Department for Transport

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of local authorities that bid for pothole funding in 2014-15 were successful.

Andrew Jones: In April 2014 English local highway authorities were invited to bid for a share of a £168 million Pothole Fund for 2014/15 to repair local roads in England as announced in the March 2014 Budget. An announcement was made in June 2014. All local highway authorities received a share of the funding as set out in the table available at the following weblink: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/321677/pothole-funding-2014.pdf

Parking: Pedestrian Areas

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress the Government has made on an impact analysis and consultation on changes to current pavement parking legislation since the withdrawal of the Pavement Parking (Protection of Vulnerable Pedestrians) Bill.

Andrew Jones: I intend to convene a round table in March, the details of which are currently being finalised. The round table will discuss the topic, and help to inform the Department’s thinking and the work it plans to do later this year to examine more closely the legal and financial implications of alternative approaches.

Railways: Franchises

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the criteria are by which his Department measures the level of service provided by rail franchises operating.

Claire Perry: Depending on the franchise, we measure the level of services provided by the performance against the set benchmarks (capacity, cancellations and delay minutes), and/or the Public Performance Measure. Some franchises are also measured against the National Passenger Survey results.

NHS: Motor Vehicles

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether recent changes to Government Buying Standards to encourage the uptake of safer vehicles will apply to the NHS.

Andrew Jones: The Government Buying Standards (GBS) are recommended for the wider public sector but outside central government theyare not obligatory. The current GBS has been in place since 2012. As stated in the recent publication “Improving air quality in the UK”, revised standards for cars and vans will be published this year. Revisions will encourage cleaner and safer vehicles where appropriate.

Railways: Franchises

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what statutory arrangements are in place to penalise rail franchises which consistently perform poorly; and how often such arrangements have been called on since 2010.

Claire Perry: Section 55 of the Railways Act 1993 (as amended) gives the Secretary of State power to make an Enforcement Order where a train operator contravenes a term of the franchise agreement. Such an Order may require the train operator to take specified steps to address the contravention and can include a requirement to pay a penalty if the Train Operator contravenes the Order. Section 57A of the Railways Act 1993 (as amended) gives the Secretary of State a separate power to impose a penalty for contravention of a term of the franchise agreement as an alternative to making an Enforcement Order or in addition to such an Order (provided that the Order does not include a penalty provision). Since 2010 no train operator has been required to make a payment for breach of an Enforcement Order under section 55. Some 13 Enforcement Orders under Section 55 have been issued, and one train operator has been required to make a penalty payment imposed under section 57A.

Railways: Tickets

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure train companies have simple and easily comprehensible ticketing policies and offer the cheapest ticket for any requested journey.

Claire Perry: Rail passengers are protected by the National Rail Conditions of Carriage and also the terms of the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement (TSA), an inter-operator agreement that governs, among other things, the retail of rail tickets. These provisions safeguard passengers’ interests by requiring train operators to provide clear information and to sell the most suitable ticket for their journey. This will, in many cases, be the cheapest ticket. Operators are required, under the terms of the TSA, to ask sufficient suitable questions in order to ascertain and sell the best ticket for each passenger’s needs.In a response to my challenge in December 2014, the rail industry worked with the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to develop a Code of Practice on Retail Information, published in March 2015. The ORR wrote to all train operators in May 2015 to establish levels of compliance with the Code and published an update on progress in September 2015.

Railways: Tickets

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to make it easier for passengers to access the cheapest tickets available for any requested journey.

Claire Perry: I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for Coventry South (Jim Cunningham) on 29 January 2016 UIN 24320, http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-questions-answers/?page=1&max=20&questiontype=AllQuestions&house=commons%2clords&uin=24320.

Taxis: Greater London

Mr Charles Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2016 to Question 23012, which options the Government is discussing with the Mayor; and what information his Department holds on the potential effect of other ways of influencing the private hire vehicle market that do not require new legislation.

Andrew Jones: On 20 January 2016 the Mayor of London announced his plans for modernising and enhancing London’s private hire vehicle industry. In these plans the Mayor recognised the need to investigate ways to address the congestion and air quality impacts of the increasing number of private hire vehicles in London without capping numbers. The Government will discuss with the Mayor any options that are proposed. The Government supports competition and growth in the taxi and private hire sector although we are aware of a range of factors that could affect the private hire market in London, including raising standards and removing exemptions from the Congestion Charge. The Department’s Best Practice Guidance for taxi and private hire vehicle licensing advises licensing authorities that licensing requirements which are unduly stringent will tend unreasonably to restrict the supply of taxi and private hire vehicle services.

European New Car Assessment Programme

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, in what way his Department participates in the European New Car Assessment Programme; and what his policy is on changes to the criteria for awarding five stars for safety.

Andrew Jones: The Department for Transport, as a founding member of Euro NCAP, continues to take a keen interest in the organisation through membership of the Board of Directors. Euro NCAP has regularly updated the assessment criteria to reflect new technologies and improved designs. As such it has been fundamental to improving road safety of new cars in the UK and the organisation provides a valuable source of information to UK consumers which the government fully supports.

Aviation: Crew

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is taking steps to encourage people to become pilots.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Secretary of State for Transport appointed Terry Morgan CBE to develop a transport infrastructure skills strategy, which was published on the 28 January. The strategy, which covers aviation and specifically pilot training, contains recommendations for both government and industry to act on.

Transport: Costs

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to (a) monitor and (b) help limit increases in costs for (i) airport parking and (ii) train travel.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Department does not monitor costs for airport parking. Airports are private commercial enterprises operating in a competitive market. Any charges the airport wishes to pass on to passengers or visitors (including car parking) is solely a matter for the airport to manage and justify. In terms of train travel, we recognise the pressure on hardworking families and have put a stop to above inflation (RPI) increases in regulated fares until 2020, extending the policy of a cap at RPI +0% for regulated rail fares we introduced in 2014. This will save the average season ticket holder £425 in this Parliament and means average earnings are outstripping rail fare increases for the first time in a decade.

Air Traffic Control

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will raise the ceiling at which aircraft may be vectored from 4,000 to 7,000 feet.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Government is considering vectoring practices by air traffic controllers as part of a wider review of its policies on airspace and noise.

Unmanned Air Vehicles: Greater London

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps his Department has taken to protect people living in the vicinity of (a) Heathrow and (b) RAF Northolt from (i) drones and (ii) unmanned aerial vehicles.

Mr Robert Goodwill: A cross government working group led by the Department for Transport is undertaking a detailed analysis of the range of risks posed by drones. This work is ongoing and kept under constant review. Further work is now proceeding to capture and evaluate potential mitigation measures and strategies. Initial guidance on tackling the risks has been provided to constabularies across the UK. Work is also underway to qualify the specific level of risk posed by small drones to commercial air transport. We are talking to both the Civil Aviation Authority and airports to find technical solutions to the problems around airports, these include mandated geo-fencing or frequency jammers. The CAA has also worked with major drone manufacturers on the geo-fencing capabilities of their products, which has included providing a list of locations such as airport control zones.

Unmanned Air Vehicles: Safety

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on public safety of placing the regulation of (a) drones and (b) unmanned aerial vehicles within the purview of the Civil Aviation Authority.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is the independent statutory authority responsible for regulating civil aircraft, including RPAS and small drones. However, the Department recognises that there are types of offenses relating to drones that are not aviation specific or pose an aviation risk and are more social, so the degree to which the CAA should be involved is currently under review. We are currently developing a Memorandum of Understanding between the DfT, the CAA, the Home Office and Police to better establish where responsibility lies for enforcing breaches of drone related regulations

Bus Services: Franchises

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what criteria local authorities will be expected to meet in order to implement bus franchising in their areas; and whether their performance against the criteria will be subject to independent assessment.

Andrew Jones: The Buses Bill will introduce new powers for local authorities to franchise their local bus services. The Bill is still being drafted and it is therefore too early to confirm the detail of the process that may be proposed through the Bill.

Bus Services: Franchises

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions his Department has had with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on the effect of bus franchising on the vehicle manufacturing sector.

Andrew Jones: My Department has not yet entered into discussions with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on the effect of bus franchising on the vehicle manufacturing sector. My officials have however discussed proposals with the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

Bus Services

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to maintain a strong commercial bus market.

Andrew Jones: Buses play a vital role as the backbone of our public transport system and are key to a healthy growing economy. We want to see the bus industry thrive and are introducing a Buses Bill which will provide local authorities and bus operators with a wider, more effective range of tools to improve local bus services. The Bill will include arrangements to allow commercial bus operators to work more effectively in partnership with local government and other local stakeholders. Furthermore, the Government decided that financial support for bus services provided through the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) system – around £250m a year - should be protected as part of the 2015 spending round, preserving millions of bus passenger journeys. Around £200m of that is paid to individual bus operators, according to how much fuel they use in running their services. The remaining funding is paid to local authorities to help support bus services in their areas. DfT is reforming BSOG to make it more effective, and plans to publish details of changes to the system in early 2016. This should improve the grant’s effectiveness in supporting bus services, and provide better value to the taxpayer.

Transport: Greater Manchester

Mr David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 9 November 2015 to Question 15641, what estimate he has made of the projected transport budget per capita in Greater Manchester after the devolution agreement comes into effect.

Andrew Jones: The devolution deal agreement with Greater Manchester will provide the city region with a devolved and consolidated local transport budget. The deal also provides Greater Manchester with other funding and flexibilities that it can use to invest in transport if it chooses. In addition, there are national investment programmes that will benefit Greater Manchester. Such an estimate is therefore dependent on decisions that are still to be taken locally and nationally.

Air Safety Support International

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, where each office of Air Safety Support International is located; and what the annual budget is of each such office.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Air Safety Support International (ASSI) has one office which is in Crawley. ASSI’s budget for 2015/16 is £3.068 million.

Cycling

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Highways England document, Cycling Strategy: our approach, published in January 2016, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the needs of cyclists are also considered when improvements are made to the local road network.

Andrew Jones: Decisions on how best to provide for cyclists on local roads are matters for the local authority – not only do they have a duty to balance the needs of all road users when considering how to design and manage their road networks, but they also have a detailed understanding of their roads. Our guidance in Local Transport Note 2/08: Cycle Infrastructure Design is comprehensive and allows councils to design good, safe schemes within current legislation. It already includes most of the measures highlighted as good practice by, for example, the All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group, and British Cycling. Government promotes best practice through the Cycle Proofing Working Group; an advisory body to the Government on ‘cycle proofing’. They share knowledge of cycle proofing with those designing and implementing cycle infrastructure on UK roads through their website:-https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/cycle-proofing-working-group

Shipping

Christian Matheson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many (a) deaths, (b) missing persons incidents and (c) sexual assaults or serious crimes against the person have been reported against UK citizens whilst at sea in each year since and including 2010.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Department for Transport does not hold statistics on the number of UK citizens who die at sea, become missing persons or are the victims of sexual assault or serious crimes against the person whilst at sea.

Public Transport: Disability

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 10 December 2015 to Question 18454, what progress his Department is making on updating the Accessibility Action Plan; and when he plans to publish it.

Andrew Jones: The Department for Transport is preparing a revised Accessibility Action Plan (AAP) at the moment in discussion with the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee. We plan for the AAP to be ready for wider consultation in the summer and that it will likely be published by the end of the year.

British Transport Police: Finance

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has requested the British Transport Police to set out options for a reduction in the British Transport Police budget.

Claire Perry: I refer the Hon. Member to my previous answer of 11 January 2016 http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-questions-answers/?page=1&max=20&questiontype=AllQuestions&house=commons%2clords&uin=20671.

Southern

Nusrat Ghani: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2016 to Question 23955, how much of those revenues were directed to his Department as fines for poor performance.

Claire Perry: None of the revenues relate to fines for poor performance paid to the Department as no fines were levied.

British Transport Police: Finance

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 26 January 2016 to Question 24232, how much has been allocated for overall expenditure in the 2016-17 budget for the British Transport Police.

Claire Perry: The British Transport Police Authority has set an expected budget of £295.1 million for the British Transport Police in 2016/17.

Crossrail 2 Line: Woking

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of implementing the recommendations of Surrey County Council's Surrey Rail Strategy: Crossrail 2 Assessment Final Report, relating to the extension of Crossrail 2 to Woking.

Claire Perry: No decisions on either further government investment in Crossrail 2 or the final route for Crossrail 2 have been made. The National Infrastructure Commission has been asked to provide advice to the government by Budget 2016 on the best approach to large-scale investment in London’s transport infrastructure and this will include consideration of Crossrail 2. Their advice will help inform decisions on any next steps for the scheme and therefore, prior to their advice, the Secretary of State is not in a position to make an assessment on the potential merits of an extension of Crossrail 2 to Woking. However, Transport for London and Network Rail analysis shows that Crossrail 2 would release capacity for additional services on the South West Main Line into Waterloo. This would mean that destinations across the region, including Woking and other towns and cities not on the proposed route, would benefit from more frequent and reliable services into London.

Speed Limits: Greater London

Jim Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many London boroughs have implemented a 20 mph speed limit; how many attempted prosecutions there have been for exceeding such speed limits in each of the last five years; and how many such prosecutions have resulted in a conviction.

Andrew Jones: The figure for the number of London boroughs who have implemented 20mph speed limits is not held by the Department for Transport. The Ministry of Justice do not hold data breakdown by local authority or the number of attempted prosecutions. However, they do hold data on the number of defendants proceeded against at court, prosecuted and sentenced for speeding offences; this data can be viewed on the Ministry of Justice website, at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2014 In the link to “Motoring data tool with criminal justice area” – you will find a pivot table which contains data on court proceedings for motoring offences, including speed limit offences, in England and Wales for the 12 months ending December 2004 to 12 months ending December 2014.

British Transport Police: Finance

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2016 to Question 24232 from the hon. Member for Dewsbury and Mirfield, what budget has been set for the British Transport Police for 2016-17.

Claire Perry: The British Transport Police Authority has set an expected budget of £295.1 million for the British Transport Police in 2016/17.

Luton Station

Mr Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions his Department has had with Network Rail on improvements to Luton station.

Claire Perry: I can confirm that my officials have discussed improvements to Luton station with Network Rail recently. Luton station has been selected for a number of DfT funded improvements, including Access for All and the National Stations Improvement Programme.

Taxis

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to respond to the report by the Law Commission on taxi and private hire services, published in May 2014.

Andrew Jones: I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave on 20 November 2015, http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2015-11-09/15469/.

Shipping: Minimum Wage

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 26 January 2016 to Question 24307, if he will publish on his Departmental website the existing guidance produced by his Department for seafarers on the national minimum wage.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Guidance produced for seafarers in respect of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) is the responsibility of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).General NMW guidance, including reference to seafarers, can be found at;https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/calculating-the-minimum-wage BIS is currently in the process of revising its NMW guidance for seafarers (in full consultation with relevant stakeholders) and expects to publish the amended guidance in early 2016.

Southeastern: Railway Track

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport of 28 January 2016, Official Report, column 523, on trains running over tracks from the 1930s, which sections of track on which routes carrying Southeastern services date from the 1930s.

Claire Perry: I would like to clarify that, in my contribution to the debate in Parliament on 28 January 2016, column 523, I was making a statement about how certain areas of the network in the South East have not been substantially changed or enhanced in keeping with the modern demands being placed upon them since the 1930’s, though evidently renewals will have happened over time.

Railways: Greater London

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February 2016 to Question 24776, whether his Department has made or plans to make a financial contribution to Transport for London related to the decision to increase the cost of rail fares in London by the retail price index in 2016.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The 2015 Spending Review settlement provided to Transport for London already takes into account its likely income from rail fares in 2016 and subsequent years. The Department has no plans to make any further adjustment to TfL’s funding in respect of this matter.

Cycling

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what date the (a) Cycle Proofing Working Group and (b) Cycling Health sub-group last met.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Cycle Proofing Working Group met on 14 January 2016. The Department for Transport does not have a Cycling Health sub-group.

Cycling: Safety

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding has been allocated to cycling safety from 2015 to 2020.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Department’s SR15 settlement includes over £300 million for cycling over the life of this Parliament. There is no specific budget within this funding denoted ‘cycle safety’ since a variety of cycling schemes do and will help in various ways to improve cycle safety. Several projects can however be noted: - We are providing £50m over the next four years to support Bikeability cycle training in schools; £11m was provided in 2015/16. This funding will help to increase children's road awareness, encourage active travel and improve future motorists’ empathy for more vulnerable road users. We expect to train a further 1 million children with the new funding settlement. - We are spending £114m from 2015 onwards on the Cycling Ambition Cities programme which will accelerate their development of local cycling networks, including increased protection for cyclists at junctions. - In addition, through the Road Investment Strategy, Highways England will spend £100m through to 2020/21 to make around 200 locations on our major road network more cycle-friendly. Much more widely, however, other Government funding streams will also contribute to projects which could deliver improved cycle safety. Through the Local Growth Fund, the Department estimates that an investment of at least £270m is planned by local enterprise partnerships for cycling infrastructure. Local authorities could also use sums from the £1.3bn Integrated Transport Block to 2019/20 for cycle safety schemes. It should also be noted that spending on road maintenance can benefit not just motorists but can also lead to safer conditions for cyclists, and a record £6.1billion is allocated to local highway authorities between 2015 and 2021 for road maintenance. Regarding cycleway maintenance, from 2018/19 the plan is to change the formula used to allocate local highways maintenance capital funding so that it also takes into account footways and cycleways as well as the roads, bridges and street lighting, which it is currently based on. Once implemented, around 9% of the funding for local highways maintenance will be based on footway and cycleway lengths.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Domestic Violence: Sussex

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many domestic violence refuge places there were in (a) West Sussex and (b) Mid Sussex on 1 January (i) 2010 and (ii) 2016.

Mr Marcus Jones: Data on the number of domestic violence refuge places is not held centrally. It is for local areas to assess their needs for domestic abuse services and to make decisions on the provision of safe accommodation, including refuges and support for victims of domestic abuse.

Community Land Trusts: West Sussex

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of brownfield sites in the West Sussex County Council area have been re-designated as community land trusts in each of the last five years.

Brandon Lewis: The Department does not hold information centrally on the amount or type of land held by Community Land Trusts.

Floods: Cumbria

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he plans to make a decision on whether to formally apply for EU Solidarity Funding to support communities affected by flooding in Cumbria.

James Wharton: The Government has not ruled out applying to the EU Solidarity Fund. We are assessing the case for an application and will make a decision by the end of February. The European Union Solidarity Fund does not provide additional funding to local areas, but simply reimburses emergency costs that the Government would have incurred anyway. For this reason, the Government's immediate priority remains dealing with the urgent needs of those affected, which is why we have provided over £200 million to help those affected by the floods to support recovery and repair.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Hong Kong: Human Rights

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the Chinese government on the human rights situation in Hong Kong and the alleged abduction of Lee Bo.

Mr Hugo Swire: I refer the honourable member to the answer I gave on 4 February 2016 to question number 24423.

Tunisia: EU External Trade

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make it his Department's policy to (a) increase economic support to Tunisia and (b) urge the EU to consider fast-tracking its negotiations for a free trade partnership with that country.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: UK support for Tunisia has doubled in the last year to nearly £6 million for programmes to support economic reform, governance and security sector capacity building. We will continue this high level of co-operation in the next Financial Year, including £3 million from the Conflict, Security and Stability Fund. We also anticipate significant new programmes to provide economic reform in Tunisia over the next four years, with international partners and are ready to help Tunisia access, and make more use of, existing funds from multilateral organisations. However, it is important that Tunisia sets out its plans for economic development and reform.We will continue to urge the EU to take forward negotiations on a deep and comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with Tunisia.

India: Armed Forces

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department has had discussions with the Indian authorities on the use of section 7 of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in the last 12 months.

Mr Hugo Swire: The Armed Forces (Jammu & Kashmir) Special Power Act, 1990, has not been raised in bilateral discussions within the past 12 months. We are aware of concerns on the use of section 7 of the Act regarding immunity from prosecution. Any allegations of human rights abuses must be investigated thoroughly, promptly and transparently.

Bahrain: Torture

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment the Government has made of the effectiveness of the technical assistance programme for the Bahraini police and prisons service in preventing the use of torture in police stations and prisons in that country.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We are aware of ongoing allegations against Ministry of Interior personnel, and we have expressed our concerns to the authorities.The Government of Bahrain has previously committed to consider ratifying the Optional Protocol of the Convention Against Torture. The UK strongly supports this and we have been working with the authorities to share best practice on torture prevention measures. We also ask the Government of Bahrain to allow a visit of the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture.We believe that UK support to Bahrain’s reform programme is the most constructive way to achieve long-lasting and sustainable reform in Bahrain. While it will take time to see the full results, UK support is having a direct, positive impact on areas of concern. All Foreign and Commonwealth Office programmes and project work is routinely monitored and evaluated to inform and improve future assistance.

EEA Nationals: Social Security Benefits

Chris Heaton-Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information his Department has provided to the European Commission on whether criteria for triggering the proposed emergency brake on EEA welfare payments have been met.

Mr David Lidington: The Government has had detailed technical talks with the European Institutions, during which information was shared across a range of issues including the nature of the United Kingdom's welfare system.

Diplomatic Service: Languages

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what proportion of total postings and how many ambassadors have held Operational level (C1) examination passes in the official language of the country to which they were posted in each year since 2006.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We appointed 53 Ambassadors in 2015. Of these 24 were appointed to speaker slots and 10 have an Operational level C1 examination pass. The FCO Language Centre was re-opened in September 2013 to renew the focus and investment in languages as a core diplomatic skill to ensure that we get the right people with the right skills in the right jobs to deliver our foreign policy objectives. The Language Centre gives us a strong platform to grow our language skills as an organisation and develop a pipeline of talent to fill language slots on a continuous basis. To provide statistics for the years 2006-14 would incur disproportionate cost.

Diplomatic Service: Languages

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the duration of ambassadorial postings (a) where HM Ambassador is a speaker of the official language of the country to which he is posted (b) where HM Ambassador's primary foreign language is not that of the country to which he is posted.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The majority of Heads of Mission have a tour length of three or four years, unless they are posted to a hardship or conflict post where the tour may be shorter. Around 100 Heads of Mission roles require language skills and are designated “speaker slots”.We offer language training to Heads of Mission where this is required. The FCO Language Centre was re-opened in September 2013 to renew the focus and investment in languages as a core diplomatic skill to ensure that we get the right people with the right skills in the right jobs to deliver our foreign policy objectives. The Language Centre gives us a strong platform to grow our language skills as an organisation and develop a pipeline of talent to fill language slots on a continuous basis. It is essential that all our Heads of Mission have the necessary skills, including languages, to do their jobs. Many of our Heads of Mission will return to Posts where they have existing language capability, in these cases we will provide top up or refresher training. Our Head of Mission Appointment Boards take into account language skills as part of the overall assessment of suitability for a role. In some cases the best candidate may not already speak the language and for these roles we will provide longer training to reach the requisite level. We encourage all those who have undergone language training to maintain their language skills throughout their careers.

Bahrain: Capital Punishment

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in the Bahraini authorities on the planned execution of Mohammad Ramadan and Hussain Moosa.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Bahrain has had a de facto moratorium in place on the use of the death penalty since 2010, although we are concerned a number of individuals have received the death penalty sentence since then. The UK opposes the death penalty around the world because we believe it undermines human dignity, there is no evidence that it works as a deterrent and any error made in its application is irreversible. We regularly discuss human rights and reform with the Government of Bahrain. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) raised human rights with his Bahraini counterpart, Sheikh Khalid Bin Ahmad Al Khalifa at their last meeting on 4 February.

Yemen: Military Intervention

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether UK personnel were involved in checking the target selections for any (a) deliberate and (b) unintended breaches of international humanitarian law during the recent Saudi Arabian military action in Yemen.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK is not a member of the Saudi Arabia-led military Coalition. British personnel are not involved in carrying out strikes, directing or conducting operations in Yemen or selecting targets, and are not involved in the Saudi targeting decision-making process. We have deployed a small number of military personnel serving as liaison officers in Saudi Arabia's headquarters to provide insight into Saudi operations. They remain under UK command and control.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Languages

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2016 to Question 23665, in which 33 different languages his Department has Operational Level (C1) examination pass speakers employed in the last five years up to the end of 2015.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Records show that up until the end of 2015, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office had officers with a C1 pass in the following languages:Albanian, Arabic, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Czech, Dari, Dutch, Farsi, French, Georgian, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Macedonian, Mandarin, Pashtu, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovene, Spanish, Swedish, Thai, Turkish and Vietnamese.The FCO Language Centre was re-opened in September 2013 to renew the focus and investment in languages as a core diplomatic skill to ensure that we get the right people with the right skills in the right jobs to deliver our foreign policy objectives. The Language Centre gives us a strong platform to grow our language skills as an organisation and develop a pipeline of talent to fill language slots on a continuous basis.

Palestinians: Overseas Aid

Joan Ryan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what financial assistance his Department has given to the Palestinian Authority in each of the last five years for which information is available.

Mr Desmond Swayne: I have been asked to reply.The Department for International Development (DfID) provided £349 million in support of Palestinian development from 2011-15 and will provide a further £72 million in 2015-16, of which up to £25.5 million will be provided to the Palestinian Authority. This year, UK aid will support 36,000 children in primary education and support 270 enterprises to improve their annual sales or productivity.UK aid is helping the Palestinian Authority to develop strong institutions, deliver essential public services and improve security – building the foundations for a sovereign and viable Palestinian state living alongside Israel in peace and security. For a breakdown on how financial assistance in the Palestinian Territories is spent, information is published on DfID’s Development Tracker website at https://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk.

Palestinians: Radicalism

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports his Department has received on the extent of radicalisation in the Palestinian Territories.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We condemn all violence and all incitement to commit violence. We are concerned by reports of radicalisation, which may, in turn, encourage violence in the region. We have seen reports referring to Hamas. Hamas must renounce violence, recognise Israel and accept previously signed agreements. We have also received reports on the role school textbooks play in this area. An extensive study, conducted by a joint Israeli and Palestinian research team in 2013, found the need for textbooks on both sides to do far more to promote a more positive portrayal of each other, reflecting the principles of co-existence, tolerance, justice and human dignity.

Israel: Palestinians

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports his Department has received on renewed rocket fire attacks into Gaza in Israel.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We receive reports from our Embassy in Tel Aviv and our Consulate General in Jerusalem giving us regular updates on the current situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. These updates include reports on rockets being fired from the Gaza Strip into the sea; any rocket fire from Gaza into Israel; and any retaliatory Israeli air strikes on Gaza. According to reports, in December 2015 and January 2016 a total of three rockets were fired into Israel by Gazan militant groups.

Israel: Palestinians

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on that region of recent violence in Israel and the West Bank.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We are deeply concerned by the recent violence in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Since the start of the current violence, Ministers and officials have spoken regularly to both the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority on the urgent need to de-escalate the tensions. We understand, and share, the deep frustration on all sides at the lack of progress on the Middle East Peace Process. The current violence underlines that a just and lasting resolution that ends the occupation and delivers peace for both Israelis and Palestinians is long overdue.

Middle East: Conflict, Stability and Security Fund

Joan Ryan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which (a) Israeli and (b) Palestinian non-governmental organisations and projects receiving funding from the Conflict Stability and Security Fund.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We currently fund projects through twelve Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (including East Jerusalem); ten through the Conflict Stability and Security Fund and two through Bilateral Programme Budgets. All of these NGOs are registered as Israeli. We do not fund NGOs other than for specific projects that support Her Majesty's Government's objectives.

Middle East: Conflict Pool

Joan Ryan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which (a) Israeli and (b) Palestinian non-governmental organisations and projects have received Conflict Pool funding in each of the last five years.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Details on which non-governmental organisations and projects costs that have received Conflict Pool funding in each of the last five years are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Libya

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the Government is providing to the government of Libya.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK strongly supports the Libyan Political Agreement (LPA) signed at Skhirat on 17 December by the majority of the Libyan delegates to the UN facilitated political dialogue, and by a wide range of representatives of Libyan society, municipal leaders and political parties. The Agreement paves the way for a Government of National Accord (GNA) and was unanimously endorsed by the UN Security Council Resolution 2259. Only a unified national government can begin the difficult work of establishing effective, legitimate governance, restoring stability and tackling the threat posed by Daesh. That is why we have been at the forefront of efforts to coordinate international support for the GNA.The UK hosted a meeting with the UN and international donors and agencies in October to discuss plans for coordinated support from the international community to the GNA. This has been followed up through UN-hosted coordination meetings in Tunis. Two UK-funded advisors are already working closely with Libyan PM designate Fayez Serraj’s Presidency Council, and we stand ready to work with the international community to deliver a significant package of support to help a Government of National Accord to deliver a stable and prosperous future for all Libyan citizens. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) and I both spoke recently with PM designate Serraj and also with UN Special Representative Kobler to underline the UK’s continued support for the GNA process and UN efforts in this area. The Secretary of State plans to meet PM designate Serraj and House of Representatives President Agileh shortly to discuss what further support Britain can provide.

Attorney General

Rendition and Torture: Libya

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Attorney General, whether he has been consulted by the Crown Prosecution Service about a charging decision in Operation Lydd.

Robert Buckland: The Crown Prosecution Service routinely provides the Law Officers with updates on cases and casework issues. In accordance with the practice adopted by previous Law Officers I do not usually comment on which individual cases are raised with me.

Sexual Offences

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Attorney General, what steps his Department plans to take in response to the recommendations in the report by HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate, entitled Thematic Review of the CPS Rape and Serious Sexual Offences Units, published in February 2016, (a) that a new protocol should be developed with each police force capturing early investigative advice and file quality and (b) in respect of training for lawyers and paralegal staff.

Robert Buckland: The way in which the Criminal Justice System investigates and prosecutes rape allegations is changing and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is taking a leading role. In September 2015 the CPS and Police set up a joint National Rape Steering Group, supported by a joint Delivery Board, to drive forward a co-ordinated programme of work. This programme includes the development of an optimum model for working (in rape and serious sexual offence cases) between the CPS and the Police which will address early investigative advice and file quality.It is a CPS priority that its staff have the tools and skills necessary to prosecute effectively. A detailed CPS/Police Joint National Rape Action Plan was published in June 2014 which identified a programme of training activity to deliver improvements in investigation and prosecution outcomes. This extensive programme, consisting of a range of face to face specialist training measures, is currently underway.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

UK Commission for Employment and Skills: Apprentices

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what role the UK Commission for Employment and Skills will have in 2016 in monitoring or contributing to the programmes to increase the number of apprenticeships and traineeships set out in his Department's document, English Apprenticeships: Our 2020 Vision, published in December 2015.

Nick Boles: UKCES’s main support for the Department in respect of English Apprenticeships in 2016 is its ongoing work to map the new apprenticeship standards against frameworks and Standard Occupational Classification codes to help identify the remaining gaps in standards coverage. As announced in the 2015 Spending Review, in order to prioritise funding to allow the core adult skills participation budgets to be protected in cash terms, Whitehall Departments will be withdrawing their funding for UKCES during 2016-17. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is working with UKCES and other stakeholders to manage the implications of this decision.

Apprentices: Expenditure

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much funding has been allocated to apprenticeships in each year since 2010.

Nick Boles: The following table shows actual spending figures for apprenticeships in England for Financial Years 2010-2014£KFY2010-11FY2011-12FY2012-13FY2013-14FY2014-1516 to18 inclusive744,870758,966670,211717,575783,19819 and over450,880624,602753,886737,022776,573TOTAL1,195,7501,383,5681,424,0971,454,5971,559,771 Responsibility for the Apprenticeship Programme is shared between the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which funds adult apprenticeships (19+) and the Department for Education which funds 16-18 year olds. The apprenticeships levy will put apprenticeship funding on an even more sustainable footing and improve the technical and professional skills of the workforce, which is an important component of productivity.

Insolvency Service and Skills Funding Agency: Sheffield

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether his Department plans to close the (a) Skills Funding Agency and (b) Insolvency Service in Sheffield.

Joseph Johnson: As part of the Department’s change programme, BIS2020, we anticipate reducing the number of our locations from more than 80 to approximately 7 centres plus a regional footprint. Beyond the announcement made about our Sheffield office at St Paul’s Place on 28 January, we do not yet know exactly which sites will be retained or closed over the course of the Parliament. By 2020 the majority of employees in BIS and its Partner Organisations will continue to be based outside London through a number of centres – such as in Birmingham, Glasgow, and Swindon – as well as a regional footprint for the provision of local services.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills: Cost Effectiveness

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, who authorised the report entitled, BIS 2020, What-why-when-how; and what the cost to the public purse was of that report.

Joseph Johnson: “BIS 2020: What-why-when-how” (September 2015) was one of a series of internal briefings for BIS staff. Staff are briefed on our change programme on a regular basis. The briefings are not formal documents and, as such, we do not publish them.The cost of this report to the public purse consists of the hours worked by Civil Servants on its development. These were not recorded at the time of production separately from the authors’ other work.

Apprenticeship Delivery Board: Membership

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 1 February 2016 to Question 23617, what the length will be of the time limited period of membership of the Apprenticeship Delivery Board.

Nick Boles: There is no set time limit for membership of the Apprenticeships Delivery Board, this will be reviewed by the Chair and refreshed accordingly.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills: Greater Manchester

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what plans he has for his Department's offices in Manchester.

Joseph Johnson: As part of the Department’s change programme, BIS2020, we anticipate reducing the number of our locations from more than 80 to approximately 7 centres plus a regional footprint. Beyond the announcement made about our Sheffield office at St Paul’s Place on 28 January, we do not yet know exactly which sites will be retained or closed over the course of the Parliament. By 2020 the majority of employees in BIS and its Partner Organisations will continue to be based outside London through a number of centres – such as in Birmingham, Glasgow, and Swindon – as well as a regional footprint for the provision of local services.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills: Greater Manchester

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many people are employed by his Department in (a) Salford and Eccles constituency and (b) Greater Manchester.

Joseph Johnson: The Department of Business, Innovation and Skills HQ, as at 31 January 2016, employed (a) no people in Salford and Eccles constituency and (b) 38 people in Greater Manchester.

Art Works: Copyright

Nigel Adams: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department plans to take in preparation for the European Commission's review of the Artist's Resale Right.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The European Commission has not yet set a date for a periodic review of ARR. When this happens, the Intellectual Property Office will draw on existing material and consult afresh with its stakeholders for the latest evidence to inform the review.

UK Commission for Employment and Skills: Finance

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether he commissioned an independent evaluation of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills before deciding to withdraw funding from it; and if so, if he will publish it.

Nick Boles: No independent evaluation of UKCES was commissioned. The decision by Whitehall Departments to withdraw funding from UKCES during 2016-17 was taken as part of the spending review given the need to make savings in non-participation budgets to allow the core adult skills participation budgets to be protected in cash terms. The decision had regard to the range of priorities needing to be funded from non-participation budgets. BIS is working with UKCES and the users of its services, including the Devolved Administrations, to manage the implications of this decision.

UK Commission for Employment and Skills: Finance

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether he consulted the devolved administrations of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland before deciding to withdraw funding from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills.

Nick Boles: The decision by Whitehall Departments to withdraw funding from the UKCES during 2016-17 was taken as part of the spending review given the need to make savings in non-participation budgets to allow the core adult skills participation budgets to be protected in cash terms. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has subsequently been working with the Devolved Administrations on the future arrangements for working together on common issues within the context of our devolved skills systems.

UK Commission for Employment and Skills: Finance

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how he plans to secure comprehensive analyses of skills shortages in the UK economy after funding is withdrawn from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills.

Nick Boles: In the context of needing to make savings in non-participation budgets to allow the core adult skills participation budgets to be protected in cash terms, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has consulted the Devolved Administrations and other users of labour market information on future research priorities. These discussions have identified the significance of the Employer Skills Survey, the Employer Perspectives Survey and the LMI (Labour Market Information) for All Portal. We are considering how these can best be delivered in future and will announce future arrangements as soon as final decisions are made.

Institute for Apprenticeships

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, for what reasons the responsibilities planned for the proposed Institute for Apprenticeships could not have been undertaken by the existing UK Commission for Employment and Skills.

Nick Boles: The role of the Institute for Apprenticeships (IFA) will be very different to the current role and remit of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES). The IFA must be able to make decisions independently of Ministers and hold direct operational responsibility rather than act in an advisory capacity. This will require different governance arrangements, with a small Board led primarily by employers and business leaders to steer the processes and decisions that are made.The IFA will assume functions that Government has so far undertaken in relation to apprenticeship standards and assessment plans and will operate in the context of achieving three million starts by 2020.

EU Grants and Loans: South East

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, which projects in the South East have received European Commission funding in each of the last five years; and how much each such project received in such funding in each such year.

Anna Soubry: A full list of all the projects funded by European Regional Development Fund and European Social Fund in the South East since 2007 are provided on the GOV.UK site. The total value of grants awarded to organisations in the South East from the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) 2007-2013 was €1,175.3 million (figure correct at 11/11/2015). The total value of grants awarded to organisations in the South East under the Horizon 2020 (2014-2020) programme is €246.5 million (figure correct at 29/10/2015). The figures for both programmes include grants that were awarded under the complementary Euratom research and training activities programme.

Start Up Loans Company: Applications

Gavin Newlands: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many applications have been approved by the Start-up Loan Company in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry: Since the Start Up Loans Company was established in September 2012, the Start-up Loans Company has approved a total of 36,960 applications. A breakdown of applications granted in each of the past four financial years since the Company began is set out below.  SULCo Loans ApprovedFinancial YearVolumeValue2012-20132,565£13,922,7572013-201413,431£74,218,1272014-201513,658£68,344,8712015-2016 (up to December 2015)7,306£50,235,681

Department for International Development

Pakistan: Poliomyelitis

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance her Department is giving to the government of Pakistan to help ensure that polio vaccination programmes in that country can take place without disruption by violence.

Mr Nick Hurd: The United Kingdom is fully committed to global polio eradication and is providing £300 million to support the Global Polio Eradication Initiative for 2013 to 2019. The Global Polio Eradication Initiative works closely with the Government of Pakistan, including with law enforcement and the military, to ensure that vaccination campaigns take place in the safest possible conditions.Security planning is integrated into vaccination campaigns by including members of law enforcement and military in Polio Emergency Operations Centres and ensuring there are sufficient numbers of security personnel accompanying vaccinators in security compromised areas. Security officials create safe zones for vaccinators to operate in and also provide relevant threat information that is taken into consideration before launching any vaccination activity. Community initiatives are extensively supported to build local community trust and acceptance of polio vaccination campaigns.

New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to ensure the interests of small-scale farmers are fully represented in her Department's involvement in the New Alliance initiative.

Mr Desmond Swayne: Smallholder farmers are represented in the New Alliance coordination structures, through the civil society representation at the Leadership Council, and also through the non-state actors’ coalition of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).In addition, our work on responsible investment in land led to a due diligence framework for agricultural investments which we developed jointly with the African Union, other donors, and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations. This inclusive new tool has been approved and is now being piloted, including through our support for innovative investment approaches developed by smallholders and their organisations.

UN Commission on the Status of Women

Mr Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many of her Department's staff of each grade attended the Commission on the Status of Women in March 2016.

Justine Greening: The DFID staffing requirements for this event are yet to be confirmed.

Developing Countries: Arms Trade

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether she has met relevant bodies to discuss the issue of the arms trade and development since giving evidence to the International Development Committee on 27 January 2016.

Justine Greening: I did not provide evidence to the International Development Committee on 27 January.

Syria: Military Intervention

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if the Prime Minister will make an assessment of the number of people in Syria who have been displaced as a result of UK military intervention in that country.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The purpose of coalition airstrikes against Daesh is to degrade its ability to project military force within Syria and Iraq, which is one source of displacement as non-combatants flee from Daesh’s sphere of influence. Coalition airstrikes have been proceeding since September 2014. Coalition partners do all they can to minimise the risks of civilian impact of coalition military action in line with international law.

HM Treasury

VAT

Kit Malthouse: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 26 January 2016 to Question 22515, if he will estimate the amount paid out in supplements following the late payment of VAT returns in (a) 2015-16 and (b) each of the previous 10 years.

Mr David Gauke: The following table shows HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) estimates of the total amount of Repayment Supplement it has paid on VAT repayments. The estimates draw on management information that is available from 2010-11 onwards..Date   Total VAT repayment supplement2015-16 (to 31.12.15)   £9.0m2014-15   £14.2m2013-14   £15.0m2012-13   £10.9m*2011-12   £11.8m*2010-11   £6.7m* * In order to provide a more meaningful time series of data, totals for 10-11, 11-12 and 12-13 include estimated amounts from within total payments of £12.1m that relate to accounting periods in these years but were not paid until 2015, following discovery of a systems error. In 2014-15, HMRC paid Repayment Supplement in 0.3% of all cases. In the first half of 2015-16, HMRC carried out an extensive review of its repayment process with a view to minimising delays in cases where repayments are not authorised automatically. Following the review, new processes have been introduced and HMRC expects to reduce the incidence of Repayment Supplement as a result.

Child Tax Credit: North East

Bridget Phillipson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 15 December 2015 to Question 19012, how many households in the North East and Houghton and Sunderland South constituency are in receipt of child tax credits (a) not equal to but higher than the mode and (b) not equal to but higher than the mean for each year in the data sets provided in that Answer.

Mr David Gauke: The number of families in receipt of Child Tax Credit broken down by region and parliamentary constituency can be found in the following publications. 2013/14: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/personal-tax-credits-finalised-award-statistics-geographical-statistics-2013-to-20142012/13: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/personal-tax-credits-finalised-award-statistics-geographical-statistics-2012-to-20132011/12: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/personal-tax-credits-finalised-award-statistics-geographical-statistics2010/11: http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20121103084242/http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/child-wtc-geo-may12.pdf

Revenue and Customs: ICT

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how the replacement of the HM Revenue and Customs IT Aspire contract will be conducted; and whether it will be conducted in separate tranches.

Mr David Gauke: On 5 August 2015, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) announced the next step in its plans to transition from the Aspire contract. The Department is seeking to establish a truly world class IT operation that has the right mix of technology, processes and skills in a multi-sourced model to deliver its digital vision – and savings of up to 24 per cent on its £800m annual IT budget by 2020-21. HMRC is making significant progress in preparing for the end of the Aspire IT contract in 2017. In December 2015, three services previously delivered by Capgemini were successfully brought under HMRC’s direct control.

Minimum Wage

Caroline Lucas: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of employers who self-reported their non-compliance with the national minimum wage as a result of the Government's recent campaign on their policy.

Mr David Gauke: The Government is committed to increasing compliance with minimum wage legislation and effective enforcement of it. Everyone who is entitled to the minimum wage should receive it. Employers who pay workers less than the minimum wage not only have to pay arrears of wages at current minimum wage rates but also face financial penalties of up to £20,000 per underpaid worker. A further increase in penalties will come into force in April 2016 and will increase the penalty percentage from 100% to 200% of the underpayments owed to each worker, up to the existing maximum. Work on the campaign continues so I refer the honourable member to the answer provided at UIN 8859.

Revenue and Customs: Telephone Services

Greg Mulholland: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many telephone calls were made to HM Revenue and Customs' flooding tax helpline in each of the last five years; and what the average amount of time taken to answer a telephone call to that line was in each of those years.

Greg Mulholland: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many full-time equivalent staff were employed by HM Revenue and Customs' flooding tax helpline in each of the last five years.

Mr David Gauke: The Severe Weather Helpline was originally set up in February 2014. Details of the calls received and the average time taken to answer a call since this helpline was set up are shown in the table below: Severe Weather HelplineTax YearCalls receivedAverage time taken to answer call13-146608 seconds14-1587414 seconds15-16*1,33932 secondsTotal2,873*until 31/01/16 HM Revenue and Customs are unable to provide information on the number of full-time equivalent staff on the flooding helpline as this is not held.

Revenue and Customs: Telephone Services

Greg Mulholland: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many telephone calls HM Revenue and Customs has received from (a) small businesses, (b) medium-sized businesses and (c) large businesses in each of the last five years; and what the average time taken to answer telephone calls from each such category of business was in each of those years.

Mr David Gauke: This information is not held by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). HMRC handles around 50 million telephone calls annually and regularly publishes general performance reports at Gov.uk.

Welfare Tax Credits

Paul Blomfield: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 26 January 2016 to Question 22971, if he will require HM Revenue and Customs to collect data on the (a) the number of tax recipients who have their credits erroneously withdrawn and (b) reasons given for those withdrawals.

Mr David Gauke: Data could be obtained at disproportionate cost showing the volume of cases withdrawn.

Revenue and Customs: Telephone Services

Greg Mulholland: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many phone calls were made to HM Revenue and Customs' High Net Worth Unit in each of the last five years; and what the average amount of time taken was to answer a phone call to that unit in each of those years.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs does not hold this information.

Business: Taxation

Jim McMahon: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many commercial organisations have reached a negotiated settlement with HM Revenue and Customs on the amount of tax owed to the public purse since 2010.

Mr David Gauke: Disputes with taxpayers of all types as to the right amount of tax that is due are a normal part of tax administration. There is huge variation in the nature of tax disputes depending on the complexity of the taxpayer’s behaviour, the amount and type of tax at stake and the transactions undertaken. Under its statutory powers, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) resolves most civil tax disputes by agreement and without resorting to litigation where the settlement secures the tax that HMRC believes is due under the law. If the right amount can’t be agreed, the dispute goes to litigation at the Tribunal. For any dispute, HMRC’s decision on how it should be resolved is taken by the final appropriate decision maker with appropriate management oversight. For the majority of cases this will constitute authorisation by a case worker’s line manager. However, the most significant and sensitive cases are considered by three Commissioners.

Patents: Corporation Tax

Andrew Gwynne: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many companies have paid a lower rate of corporation tax as a result of the patent box initiative since its implementation.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the value is of the tax relief granted through the patent box in each year since 2013.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an assessment of the effect of the patent box tax arrangement on the economy.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of companies that have benefited from the patent box are UK domiciled.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many companies benefiting from the patent box are (a) UK and (b) non-UK domiciled pharmaceutical manufacturers.

Mr David Gauke: The information is not held in the form requested. The estimated amounts of Patent Box relief can be found at the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/487119/Dec15_expenditure_reliefs_Final.xlsx.pdf

Business: Taxation

Julie Cooper: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many tax investigations by the HM Revenue and Customs Large Business Service resulted in no additional tax due at the time of their conclusion in each of the last three years; and for how long each such investigation lasted.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not publish this information. Since 2010, HMRC has brought in over £38 billion by effectively policing the tax rules as they apply to large businesses. This includes £7.3 billion from large businesses in 2014/15 alone.

Non-domestic Rates

Mrs Anne Main: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress  he is making on his Department's review of business rates; and when he plans to report the findings of that review to the House.

Mr David Gauke: The Government received a large number of responses to the business rates review. The review will be fiscally neutral and will report at Budget 2016.

Treasury: Sky

Maria Eagle: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what meetings (a) Ministers and (b) civil servants in his Department have had with (i) James Murdoch and (ii) representatives from Sky UK Limited in each year since 2012.

Harriett Baldwin: Details of Ministers' and Senior Civil Servants' meetings with external organisations, including senior media figures, are published routinely and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministers-transparency-publications on Gov.uk.

Companies: Taxation

Seema Malhotra: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many staff of HM Revenue and Customs' Large Business Service worked on each of that service's investigations relating to the tax of companies in each of the last six years.

Mr David Gauke: Until 31 March 2014, HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) Large Business Service (LBS) dealt with the tax affairs of around 800 of the largest businesses in the UK. From 1 April 2014 HMRC’s Large Business directorate (LB) deals with the tax affairs of around 2,000 large businesses.  At 31 December 2015, the number of staff deployed in LB was 2,600. At year end (31 March), the number of staff deployed in previous years was: LB2014-15 2,350 LBS2013-14 1,3032012-13 1,1942011-12 1,3062010-11 1,438These staff are supplemented by specialists in other parts of HMRC. It is not possible to say how many staff were deployed on each investigation.

Companies: Taxation

Seema Malhotra: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many companies using HM Revenue and Customs' Large Business Service are subject to investigations relating to their tax; and how long each of those companies has been subject to such investigation.

Mr David Gauke: Until 31 March 2014, HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) Large Business Service dealt with the tax affairs of around 800 of the largest businesses in the UK. From 1 April 2014 HMRC’s new Large Business directorate deals with the tax affairs of around 2,000 large businesses. At 31 December 2015 HMRC had enquiries open with 567 of the largest 800 businesses covering 2,826 risks. At 31 December 2015 HMRC had enquiries open with 1,117 of the large businesses dealt with by the Large Business Directorate, covering 3,981 risks.

Illegal Money Lending Team

Richard Burden: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2016 to Question 24171, whether the change in funding for the Illegal Money Lending Team will result in a change in its levels of funding in real terms.

Harriett Baldwin: The Government is finalising funding arrangements for the enforcement of illegal money lending. These arrangements will ensure that the enforcement teams have the funding that they need to protect consumers from illegal loan sharks.

Non-domestic Rates

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the planned business rate reforms announced in the 2015 Summer Budget have been amended.

Mr David Gauke: Autumn Statement 2015 confirmed that the business rates review will report at Budget 2016. The review will be fiscally neutral.

Stamp Duty Land Tax

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to put measures in place to provide that the proposed higher rate stamp duty land tax will not apply when a purchaser who owns more than one property is replacing a main residence.

Mr David Gauke: The Government intends that a purchaser who is replacing a main residence (even if owning more than one property) will not be subject to the higher rates of SDLT on purchases of additional properties. A consultation has recently concluded on the higher rates and the final policy design will be confirmed at Budget 2016.

Ministry of Justice

Medway Secure Training Centre: G4S

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times G4S has been in breach of its contract at Medway STC since it was awarded that contract; for what reasons each such breach occurred; and what fines were incurred by G4S for each of these breaches.

Andrew Selous: Since the contract was awarded in 1997, there have been two instances of financial remedies on G4S’s contract at Medway STC, both for failure to comply with procedures. The financial penalties were for a total of £1221.87. We are examining whether the allegations made by Panorama would constitute a breach of contract.

Administration of Justice: Costs

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department plans to take in response to the finding in the annual report to Parliament of the Lord Chief Justice, dated 16 January 2016, that the UK's system of justice has become unaffordable to most; and if he will make a statement.

Mike Penning: As the Justice Secretary said in June, we have a two nation justice system at present. Those who have benefitted financially need to do more to protect access to justice for all and we are discussing with the profession how this can be taken forward. As the Lord Chief Justice made clear in his annual report, the investment the Government is making to modernise our courts and tribunals is a significant step, and one which will enable us to tackle many of the issues he identified.

Magistrates: Retirement

Joan Ryan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the mandatory retirement age for magistrates from 70 to 75; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The Government position remains that a retirement age of 70 for all judicial office holders is appropriate. A mandatory retirement age of 70 means both judges and magistrates can continue to make a contribution to society whilst allowing for regular recruitment of the judiciary. It also enables the judiciary to have the correct number of judges and magistrates, while preventing them from retiring on an ad hoc basis, and ensuring judicial independence is protected.

Personal Injury: Compensation

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, further to the Government response of October 2013 to his Department's consultation on arrangements concerning whiplash injuries in England and Wales, what plans his Department has (a) to maintain access to justice for claimants and (b) to protect such claimants from the under-settling of claims potentially arising from increases to the small claims court limit.

Dominic Raab: The Government will consult on the detail of the new reforms in due course, including any necessary safeguards. The consultation will be accompanied by an impact assessment.

Prisoner Escapes

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 18 January 2016 to Question 22908, on prisoner escapes, if he will place a copy of the letter to the hon. Member for Romford in the Library.

Andrew Selous: Once the information requested is available I will write to the hon. Member for Romford and place a copy of that reply in the Library.

Legal Aid Scheme: North West

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many applications for legal aid were (a) made by and (b) granted to victims of people charged with domestic violence in each local authority area in the North West Police Authority in each year since 2010.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The LAA does not routinely collect information on whether applicants for legal aid are victims of people charged with domestic violence. Prior to 2013, when people applied for legal aid they were not asked to declare whether domestic violence had occurred. Since 2013, applications for legal aid do not routinely request this information. Therefore the data requested is not available. People seeking protective injunctions, like non-molestation orders, remain eligible for legal aid. Legal aid also remains available in private family cases that involve domestic violence. We have listened closely to any concerns about how the system has been operating, and made changes in response, such as making it easier to prove abuse and so get legal aid. The number of applications which require Domestic Violence evidence received and granted following LASPO, and figures for civil representation in the ‘Domestic Violence’ category both pre and post LASPO, are published in the official statistics on legal aid published quarterly on the Gov.uk website at the following link https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/legal-aid-statistics

Police and Crime Commissioners: Finance

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he will announce the level of grant funding available to Police and Crime Commissioners; and if he will make a statement.

Mike Penning: I wrote to Police and Crime Commissioners on 22 January 2016 to confirm their victims’ services commissioning grants for 2016-17. We have protected the total budget for victims’ services. PCCs allocations have been held at the 2015-16 level of £63.15m. PCCs will also be allocated an additional £4.7m to support victims of child sexual abuse.

Personal Injury: Compensation

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department's press release of 28 December 2015, Insurers vow to pass on whiplash reform saving, what the evidential basis is for the Government's statement that whiplash claims cost the country £2 billion a year.

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on what proportion of the £2 billion cost of whiplash claims comes from (a) genuine claims and (b) fraudulent claims.

Dominic Raab: As noted in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement, the figure of £2 billion a year is an insurance industry estimate of the cost of dealing with road traffic related personal injury claims. The Government will be publishing an impact assessment alongside its consultation on the whiplash reforms announced in the Autumn Statement in due course.

Personal Independence Payment: Wales

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of personal independence payment appeals were successful in (a) Ogmore and (b) Wales in the latest period for which figures are available.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The First-tier Tribunal – Social Security and Child Support (SSCS) administered by HM Courts & Tribunals Service, hears appeals against Department for Work and Pensions’ decisions on a range of benefits including Personal Independence Payment (PIP). The majority of appellants living in the Ogmore area have their SSCS appeals heard in the Cardiff venues though some may be heard in Port Talbot. The following table provides information on the proportion of PIP appeals which were decided in favour of the appellant in Cardiff and Port Talbot venues and in Wales between July and September 2015 (the latest period for which figures are available). Percentage of PIP appeals found in favour of the appellant CardiffPort TalbotWalesJuly – September 201575%75%73% Note: SSCS data are recorded by the office that dealt with the case, and if the case went to oral hearing, the location of the Tribunal hearing is normally the hearing venue nearest to the appellant’s home address. Data cannot be retrieved based on the appellant’s actual address but can be produced detailing the numbers of cases that were dealt with at one of our Regional centres or heard at a specific venue. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and are the best data available.

Children: Advocacy

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing a registered intermediary when children are interviewed by police in sexual offence cases.

Mike Penning: The specific needs of vulnerable witnesses, including children, are assessed on a case by case basis. The guidance, “Achieving Best Evidence in Criminal Proceedings”, sets out best practice for the police when undertaking an initial assessment. This assessment may identify a specific need for the assistance of an intermediary during the course of the investigation, for example in an interview or latterly at court when giving evidence.

Prisons: Drugs and Pornography

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to prevent (a) illegal drugs and (b) pornography entering prisons.

Andrew Selous: We use a range of robust searching and security measures to detect items of contraband both at the point of entry to the prison and concealed within the prison. We continue to explore new methods of preventing drugs coming into prisons, including using body scanners and training search dogs to detect new psychoactive substances. Prisoners are allowed to purchase publications that are normally available through high street newsagents. There are strict controls over the publications available to prisoners, with prisons having the power to ban any material they deem unsuitable. Sex offenders are denied access to anything believed to be inappropriate or likely to affect their rehabilitation and governors may also confiscate items that present a threat to good order or discipline. All IT and IT media that prisoners have access to is checked for illicit material, including pornography. USB ports are disabled and other security measures are put in place to ensure that prisoners cannot misuse such equipment.

Witnesses: Children

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what support his Department provides to support children giving evidence in court in cases of a physical or sexual nature.

Mike Penning: Measures include the use of intermediaries to help communication, allowing witnesses to give evidence by way of pre-recorded video and /or live video links from outside the courtroom, screening the witness from the accused, removing people from the public gallery whilst the witness gives evidence and the removal of gowns and wigs.

Youth Custody: Death

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many under-18s died while in youth custody between 2010 and 2015; and what the causes of those deaths were.

Andrew Selous: The number and causes of deaths of prisoners aged under 18 and held in the custody of the National Offender Management Service is published on a quarterly basis in the Safety in Custody Statistics Bulletin annual deaths tables (see table 1.3 at the following link) https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/495427/safety-in-custody-deaths-dec-2015.xls. The most recent publication was published on 28 January 2016 and contains information on deaths up to 31 December 2015.

Prisons: Drugs

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of hospital visits made by prison officers in each of the last 12 months as a result of incidents involving new psychoactive substances.

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of prison officer hours spent guarding prisoners in hospital as as a result of incidents involving new psychoactive substances.

Andrew Selous: This information is not held centrally.

Community Rehabilitation Companies: Staff

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February to Question 23959, what contractual commitments are included in contracts with community rehabilitation companies to ensure maintenance of a minimum level of staffing.

Andrew Selous: The contracts with Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) contain robust provisions requiring CRCs to ensure that its workforce is competent and adequately trained. Contracts with the 21 CRCs have been published and can be found at the following link: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Search/Results?Keyword=3190-3-Reducing%20Reoffending&LocationType=AllLocationsAs I said in my response to question 23959, our contract management teams closely monitor and robustly manage providers to make sure they fulfil their contractual commitments to maintain service delivery, reduce reoffending, protect the public and provide value for money to the taxpayer.

Personal Injury: Compensation

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been prosecuted for bringing fraudulent claims in whiplash cases in each of the last five years.

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of whiplash claims each year which are fraudulent; and if he will place in the Library the evidence used to produce this estimate.

Dominic Raab: Information on prosecutions for fraudulent whiplash claims is not held centrally, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.The Government remains concerned about the number and cost of personal injury claims and the impact they have on motor insurance premiums. At 760,000 (of which 690,000 were for whiplash) in 2014/15, personal injury motor claims volumes are still at historically high levels, being some 50% higher than in 2006 when there were around 520,000 such claims.The Insurance Fraud Taskforce published their final report on 18 January which was supportive of the Government’s proposals to tackle fraudulent and unnecessary claims. The Government will consider their recommendations closely.The Association of British Insurers regularly publishes data on the number of detected fraudulent claims made, and the most recent published data can be found here: https://www.abi.org.uk/News/News-releases/2015/07/You-could-not-make-up-Savings-honest-customers-insurers-expose-3-6-million-worth-insurance-frauds

Prisoner Escapes

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 26 January to Question 23624, how many offences were committed by prisoners who had escaped in the last year for which figures are available.

Andrew Selous: Of those prisoners who escaped in 2014/15, the most recent period for which figures are available, none are currently listed as having a conviction for an offence committed during the period that they were unlawfully at large.

Prison Service: Redundancy Pay

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 1 February 2016 to Question 24637, how many Band 3 and above prison officers took severance or redundancy packages in each month since May 2010.

Andrew Selous: It has not been possible to answer this question within the time available. I will write to the hon. Member as soon as possible.

Restraint Techniques

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the national roll-out of the minimising and managing physical restraint system is to be fully completed and implemented.

Andrew Selous: The Minimising and Managing Physical Restraint (MMPR) system has been rolled out across the youth secure estate with the exception of Feltham Young offender Institution (YOI), which goes live at the end of February 2016 and Parc YOI, which goes live by the end of this year. MMPR will also be rolled out to the under -18 secure escort service for Secure training Centres and Secure Children’s Homes, and will go live in April 2016.

Youth Custody

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effect of decommissioning sites where children could be detained on (a) the mix of children in custody, (b) the implementation of the Minimising and Managing Physical Restraint system and (c) staff numbers.

Andrew Selous: The Youth Justice Board (YJB) is responsible for commissioning and placing all young people under-18 in a suitable secure establishment. Following the welcome and continued reduction in the number of young people in custody, the YJB has been able to reduce the number of commissioned places across the secure estate. However, as the number has reduced so those who remain tend to be those who have been arrested for the most violent crimes and who pose the greatest difficulties for those who care for them. Although decommissioning will affect the number of places available in the secure estate, young people are placed in establishments that can most effectively manage their individual needs and risks. Factors such as age, suitability of regime, closeness to home, risk of self-harm or to others, and other risk factors are all been taken into account when placing a young person in custody. Restraint should only be used against young people as a last resort where it is absolutely necessary to do so, when young people are putting their own safety and the safety of others at risk, and where no other form of intervention is possible or appropriate. We are committed to closely monitoring the independently assessed Minimising and Managing Physical Restraint system, including through an ongoing analysis of its effectiveness. Information on the effects of decommissioning on staff numbers within the youth secure estate is not available centrally and can only be collected at disproportionate costs.

Prisoners: Ethnic Groups

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of prisoners were BAME in (a) 2010 and (b) the most recent year for which figures are available.

Andrew Selous: Some 21,917 prisoners (26% of the prison population) declared themselves BAME as at 31 December 2015, compared with 23,657 (28%) on 30 June 2010.

Motor Vehicles: Insurance

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2016 to Question 20722, what figures his Department used for the number of motor accidents in each year from 2006 to 2015 in formulating that Answer.

Dominic Raab: Data on the number of motor accidents between 2006 and 2015 was obtained from publicly available datasets published by the Department for Transport. This data can be obtained from:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/497176/ras45004.xlshttps://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/461863/ras10013.xls

Community Rehabilitation Companies: Disclosure of Information

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answers of 2 February 2016 to Questions 23949 and 24848, for what reasons the action plans and operational assurance audit referred to are commercially sensitive.

Andrew Selous: The MoJ determines that information is commercially sensitive including when documents contain information that if released, would be likely to prejudice someone’s commercial interests. The Ministry of Justice has robust contract management processes aligned with National Audit Office Guidelines and will manage the plan strictly in accordance with the contract.

Magistrates: Retirement

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential costs and benefits of reducing the mandatory retirement age of magistrates from 70 to 60; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The Government position remains that a retirement age of 70 for all judicial office holders is appropriate. A mandatory retirement age of 70 means both judges and magistrates can continue to make a contribution to society whilst allowing for regular recruitment of the judiciary. It also enables the judiciary to have the correct number of judges and magistrates, while preventing them from retiring on an ad hoc basis, and ensuring judicial independence is protected.

Sarah Reed

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the status is of (a) the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman and (b) any other investigation into the death in custody of HM Prison Holloway prisoner Sarah Reed who was pronounced dead on 11 January 2016.

Andrew Selous: Every death in custody is a tragedy and we work hard to learn the lessons from each death. All deaths in prison custody are subject to a police investigation, an independent investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) and a Coroner’s inquest. I can confirm that each of these processes has begun following the death of Ms Reed, and I extend my condolences to her family and friends. Until investigations have concluded it would not be appropriate for me to comment further.

Police: Crimes of Violence

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many police officers have been convicted of an assault committed while on duty in each year since 2010.

Andrew Selous: The information requested can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Courts: Security

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 10 December 2015 to Question 18874, when his Department plans to write to clarify the date captured in the other category; and if he will place a copy of that letter in the Libraries of both Houses.

Mr Shailesh Vara: My Department takes the issue of security within courts extremely seriously. Working with our security suppliers, officials continue to analyse the data within the other category to ensure the data provided answers question 18874 and provides detail on “other weapons” as requested. I will write a letter to honourable member soon and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Crime: Victims

Mrs Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans to announce the level of grant funding available to Police and Crime Commissioners for commissioning support services for victims of crime; and if he will make a statement.

Mike Penning: I refer the honourable member to the answer which I gave in PQ 25197 to George Howarth on 9th February 2016.

Prisoners: Police Custody

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 26 January 2016 to Question 23552, how many times police cells were used to hold prisoners overnight who were aged (a) 15 to 17, (b) 18 to 20 and (c) 21 and over in each month in 2014 and 2015.

Andrew Selous: We will always have enough prison places for those sent to us by the courts and will do so in a way that gives taxpayers the best possible value for money. There are no plans to re-activate police cells under Operation Safeguard. No police cells have been used under Operation Safeguard since October 2008. This means the number of prisoners held temporarily overnight in police cells has fallen from over 50,000 in 2008. Tables 1 and 2 show the number of prisoners, by the requested age groups, who were temporarily held overnight in police cells in England and Wales each month in 2014 and 2015. No prisoners aged 15 to 17 were held overnight in police cells in 2014 and 2015. Table 1: 18 year olds and above during 2014DateTotal number of prisoners held in police cell18 to 20 year olds21 and overJan – 141684164Feb – 1437213359Mar – 141757168Apr – 1464658May – 1446244Jun – 141129103Jul – 142748266Aug – 141169107Sept – 1462062Oct – 1496690Nov – 141499140Dec - 141115106 Table 2: 18 year olds and above during 2015DateTotal number of prisoners held in police cell18 to 20 year olds21 and OverJan – 1589287Feb – 151121111Mar – 1574371Apr – 151075102May - 1547047Jun – 151134109Jul – 151807173Aug – 1563360Sept – 151377130Oct – 151744170Nov – 151956189Dec - 151513148

Prime Minister

Race Relations

Stephen Timms: To ask the Prime Minister, whether it is Government policy to promote multiculturalism in the UK.

Mr David Cameron: We have been very clear: we are proud that Britain is one of the most successful multi ethnic, multi faith democracies in the world. The Government is clear that people have full freedom here to choose and practice their faith. It is right though to challenge the view held by some that we should encourage communities to develop separately and effectively live in a segregated way. The Government is committed to boosting integration in some of our most isolated communities, and to proudly promoting the British values that we all share.

Social Security Benefits: EU Nationals

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to his oral contribution of 3 February 2016, Official Report, column 939, what the source is of the statistics he quoted.

Mr David Cameron: The figures were taken from analysis carried out by DWP and HMRC on benefit and Tax Credit claims by recently arrived EEA migrants.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Betting

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 March 2015 to Question 227069, whether his Department has yet considered the recommendations of the Use of Dormant Betting Accounts Report, relating to the use of money from dormant betting accounts and unclaimed winnings held by betting operators for investment in good causes.

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions his Department has had with betting operators to ascertain how much is held in dormant betting accounts and unclaimed winnings.

David Evennett: My officials have regular discussions with betting operators on a wide range of issues.The Government keeps under review ways to support investment in good causes, including the recommendations of the Use of Dormant Betting Accounts Report.Ministers continue to encourage the gambling industry to maximise their contributions to these important areas, including funding programmes of research, prevention, and treatment of gambling-related harm,

Football: Finance

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what meetings Ministers and officials in his Department have had with the Premier League on investment in grassroots sport since 2010.

David Evennett: Details of Ministers' and Senior Civil Servants' meetings with external organisations, including senior media figures, are published routinely and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministers-transparency-publications on Gov.uk. Through our most recent discussions we are pleased to have secured a commitment from the League to at least double what they currently invest in grassroots football over the next three years. That equates to over £100million per annum.

Culture: Finance

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, to provide details of each of the meetings that (a) Ministers and (b) civil servants in his Department have had with the Department for Communities and Local Government since May 2015 on the impact of the local government finance settlement on local arts and culture organisations and projects.

Mr Edward Vaizey: DCMS and CLG Ministers and officials regularly discuss matters of shared interest including arts, culture and public libraries.

Tourism Ministerial Group

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, on what dates the inter-Ministerial group on tourism has met; and who is a member of that group.

David Evennett: The inter-ministerial group on tourism meets quarterly. The first meeting was held on 16th September 2015 and Ministers will meet again in February. Membership is composed of the following Departments, and attendance is subject to the agenda for the meeting: DCMS BIS Home Office DCLG DfT HMT DEFRA.

Members: Correspondence

Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he intends to answer the letter to him dated 17 December 2015 with regard to Mr T Opke.

Mr Edward Vaizey: I can confirm a response has been sent to the honourable member.

Sports: Coventry

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding was allocated to projects to support grassroots sports facilities in Coventry in each of the last five years.

David Evennett: Since 2011, Sport England has invested £458,553 of National Lottery funding to upgrade and improve grassroots sports facilities in Coventry. The Government's recently published 'Sport Strategy' (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sporting-future-a-new-strategy-for-an-active-nation) provides a vision for future investment in sport, including increased funding for grass roots sports facilities. Sport England are now consulting on their own strategy to implement this. Sport England National Lottery investment, broken down by local authority area, is publicly available on Sport England’s website and can be found here: www.sportengland.org/funding/investments-weve-made.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Sky

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what meetings (a) Ministers and (b) civil servants in his Department have had with (i) James Murdoch and (ii) representatives from Sky UK Limited in each year since 2012.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Details of Ministers' and Senior Civil Servants' meetings with external organisations, including senior media figures, are published routinely and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministers-transparency-publications on Gov.uk.

Broadband

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will estimate how many (a) households and (b) businesses do not currently reach Ofcom's acceptable minimum broadband speed of 10Mbit/s in each region and constituent part of the UK.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many (a) households and (b) businesses do not have a broadband speed of 2Mbit/s in each region and constituent part of the UK.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Nearly 90% of homes and businesses in the UK currently have access to superfast broadband - and we are on target to reach 95% by the end of 2017. The Ofcom Connected Nations Report, published in December 2015 (which can be found here: http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/market-data/infrastructure/connected-nations-2015/) shows the percentage of premises that have access to broadband speeds above 10Mbit/s. Since 2010, we have substantially reduced the proportion of all UK premises with speeds less than 2Mbit/s - from 11% to around 1% in December last year. All homes and businesses that cannot currently get 2Mbps can now take advantage of a subsidised satellite broadband service delivering speeds of 10Mbps or more - meeting our commitment to provide access to at least 2Mbit/s broadband speed to all premises.

Broadband

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, by when he expects all households and businesses to have access to fibre optic broadband.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Government will launch a public consultation early next year in preparation for the implementation of a new broadband Universal Service Obligation by 2020, with the ambition to give people the legal right to request a connection to broadband with speeds of 10 Mbps, no matter where in the country they live. Almost 90% of households and businesses in the UK currently have access to superfast broadband - and we are on target for this to reach 95% by the end of 2017.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Families

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what guidance his Department has issued to its officials to support implementation of the Family Test.

Mr Edward Vaizey: In October 2014, the Department for Work and Pensions published guidance for Government officials on how the Test should be applied when formulating policy. Produced in collaboration with third sector partners from the Relationship Alliance, the guidance outlines the basis for the Family Test and provides policy officials with information on how the Test can be applied.

Telecommunications

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he expects to publish the reformed Electronic Communications Code.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Government remains committed to delivering a reformed Electronic Communications Code that is clear, fit for purpose, and supports network coverage which provides consumers with a choice of high quality telecommunications services. We are considering the interests of all stakeholders. We will update Parliament on plans in due course.

Broadband: South East

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of homes in (a) Woking constituency, (b) Surrey and (c) the South East have access to superfast broadband.

Mr Edward Vaizey: In the Woking constituency the Government expects 98% of homes & businesses to have access to superfast broadband at the end of the Superfast Surrey project. At county level Surrey will have over 99% superfast broadband coverage by the end of the Superfast Surrey project.

Broadband: South East

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress he has made in giving access to download speeds of at least 2mbps to residents of (a) Woking constituency, (b) Surrey and (c) the South East.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Nearly 90% of homes and businesses in the UK currently have access to superfast broadband - and we are on target for this to reach 95% by the end of 2017. All premises which cannot currently get 2Mbps will be able take advantage of a subsidised satellite broadband service which can deliver speeds of 10Mbps or more.

Openreach

Dr Andrew Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, on which dates (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department have met with BT to discuss separating Openreach from its parent company.

Mr Edward Vaizey: This is a matter for the independent telecoms regulator, Ofcom, who is currently reviewing the markets for digital communications in the UK and is due to report at the end of this month. Government has no role in this process.

Broadband: Sussex

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the proportion of small and medium-sized enterprises in (a) West Sussex and (b) Mid Sussex that will have access to superfast broadband by completion of phase two of the superfast broadband programme.

Mr Edward Vaizey: By the end of phase two of the Superfast Broadband Programme approximately 95% of homes and businesses in West Sussex will have access to superfast broadband. For the Mid Sussex constituency over 96% of premises will have access to superfast broadband by the end of the project.

Department for Work and Pensions

Employment Schemes: Veterans

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many companies have signed up to the Veterans Guaranteed Interview scheme in each year since its inception.

Priti Patel: The Veterans Interview Programme was launched in November 2012 as a non-political, cross party initiative. It was purposefully set up with light governance arrangements to ensure the focus is on support for veterans and not on completing paperwork. Although DWP provides support for the scheme on this basis, employers are not required to let the Department know once they have decided to take part in the programme. As a result we do not have the information available to answer this question.

Ingeus: Training

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what training is provided to new Ingeus advisers in advising clients with mental health issues; and what plans are in place to ensure all Ingeus advisers are given such training.

Priti Patel: The Department does not prescribe how providers delivering welfare to work provision train their staff.

Social Security Benefits: Wales

Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average length of time to wait is for a reconsideration of a benefit decision by (a) his Department and (b) a tribunal hearing in (i) Ogmore and (ii) Wales in the latest period for which figures are available.

Justin Tomlinson: The published statistics in relation to Employment and Support Allowance reconsideration clearance times in the Great Britain are in the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/mandatory-reconsiderations-of-dwp-benefit-decisions-data-to-october-2014 The information requested in relation to other benefit reconsiderations is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. The latest information from Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service for appeal clearance times for the areas that cover Ogmore, Wales and the UK in the period April – September 2015, is as follows: Area1Waiting Time (Weeks) Cardiff16.6 Port Talbot18.5 Wales17.7 UK18 Source: HMCTS MI System Feb 16 Note: The data is normally registered to the venue nearest to the appellant’s home address. Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service cannot retrieve data based on the appellant’s actual address, but can produce reports detailing the numbers of cases that were dealt with at one of its Regional centres. The majority of appellants living in the Ogmore area have their appeals heard in the Cardiff venues, though some may be heard in Port Talbot.

Attendance Allowance

Jo Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues and local government representatives on transferring responsibility of attendance allowance to local authorities.

Jo Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress he has made on the transfer of responsibility for attendance allowance to local authorities.

Justin Tomlinson: Later this year, the Government will consult on giving more responsibility to support older people with care needs to Local Authorities in England and to Wales, including people who, under the current system, would be supported through Attendance Allowance. Work on the consultation is progressing with the relevant departments, and officials will work with stakeholders throughout the consultation process.

Social Security Benefits: Scotland

Corri Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many benefit claimants, from which areas, have been asked to attend medical assessment appointments in Edinburgh by Atos due to a lack of appointments available in Glasgow; and how many benefit claimants are currently being assessed at (a) the Edinburgh centre and (b) the Glasgow centre.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department does not hold this information.

Construction: Death

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average time taken was between a fatal accident occurring in construction and the start of a prosecution on the latest date for which data is available.

Justin Tomlinson: For fatalities in construction (Standard Industrial Classification, section F) reported to HSE between 2005/06 and 2014/15, the average time between the date of incident and the date prosecution action was approved is 751 days. This number does not include some more recent or complex incidents, which remain under investigation. The time between the incident and prosecution approved to date by yearly time bands is as follows:  Time between incident and approvalNumberPercentage0 - 1 year43231-2 years51272-3 years56303-4 years28154-5 years955 years +21 189

Construction: Prosecutions

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of construction prosecutions has resulted in a conviction in each of the last five years.

Justin Tomlinson: The percentage of construction (Standard Industrial Classification, section F) prosecutions completed in the relevant year and resulting in a conviction in each of the last five years, is as follows: YearCases for which legal proceedings have been institutedConvictionsPercentage resulting in conviction2010/1121820192%2011/1224122091%2012/1322020995%2013/14r22520993%2014/15p25824394%p - provisionalr - revised

Construction: Death

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of construction fatalities has resulted in at least one prosecution in each of the last eight years.

Justin Tomlinson: The percentage of construction (Standard Industrial Classification, section F) fatalities resulting in at least one prosecution being approved to date in each of the last eight years is as follows: YearNumber of Fatalities in Construction reported to HSENumber of fatalities with approved prosecution action*Percentage*2007/2008743851%2008/2009572849%2009/2010442045%2010/2011521631%2011/2012492245%2012/2013461635%2013/2014471532%2014/201539p718% p - Data published for the most recent year is given a 'p' status (provisional), and a year later is released as final. *Investigations of some recent and more complex incidents are continuing.

Personal Independence Payment

Corri Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what impact assessment his Department carried out on the changes proposed in the Consultation on aids and appliances and the daily living component of personal independence payment, Cm 9171, published in December 2015.

Justin Tomlinson: DWP has conducted a consultation to seek views on how support can best be provided to help meet the costs of disability faced by people who are currently awarded points due to aids and appliances. The department has received responses from a range of interested parties, including disabled people and disability organisations. The consultation has now closed and the department is considering these responses.No decision has yet been made as to whether any change should be made to the current system and the department does not have any preference between the five options presented in the consultation. We also invited additional suggestions for change.If the department decides that change is required, a full equality analysis will be conducted and considered prior to a final decision being made, in line with the Department’s obligations under the Equality Act 2010.

Universal Credit: Young People

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he plans to take to support unemployed young people under 25 whose income will be affected by the planned changes to universal credit from April 2017.

Priti Patel: Universal Credit gives greater incentives for people to move into, and then progress in work. Within legacy benefits single young people under 25 without children are not generally eligible for in-work support from Working Tax Credit and can face a severe withdrawal of benefits when they go into work. The introduction of Universal Credit represents a marked improvement in support.Furthermore, DWP is introducing a new Youth Obligation from April 2017 which will ensure that young people aged 18–21 who are claiming Universal Credit, are given the support, skills and experience they need to move into work, to sustain work and to fulfil their potential.

Personal Independence Payment

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the reduction in personal independence payment award rates between October 2014 and October 2015.

Justin Tomlinson: Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is continuing to roll out in a safe and steady manner and as such there will be a variety of cases, and case volumes, within the system at any one time. Correspondingly, variation in PIP award rates and amounts is to be expected in a live system of this scale as cases are assessed on an individual basis.There are no targets for the numbers who are in receipt of PIP.

Personal Independence Payment

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether Atos or Capita have (a) targets or (b) guidelines for the number or proportion of personal independence payment applications which are successful.

Justin Tomlinson: Providers have no targets or guidelines relating to the outcome of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) applications. Atos and Capita supply the Department with an assessment report on PIP claimants; They do not determine the suitability of that claimant for the benefit. That is decided by Departmental Decision Makers.

Universal Credit: North West

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many universal credit claimants there were in (a) Tameside, (b) Oldham, (c) Wigan and (d) Warrington in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Priti Patel: The information you have requested is available in the official Universal Credit statistics: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/universal-credit-statistics

Ministry of Defence

Military Bases: Security

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2016 to Question 24141, at which military bases unauthorised entries were reported in 2015.

Mark Lancaster: The figures for unauthorised entries to military bases include drones and air balloon flying at low altitude over military sites but do not include failed attempts at unauthorised access. None of these incidents resulted in any significant ramifications for Defence Security. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) treats all unauthorised entries very seriously. They are investigated to a level commensurate with their complexity and impact by Military Police, MOD Police or local constabulary. The locations of security incidents of this category recorded within the MOD for 2015 are set out below. Her Majesty’s Naval Base (HMNB) Portsmouth (three incidents)HMNB DevonportHMS TEMERAIRE, PortsmouthRoyal Marine Reserves Unit, BristolPriorswood Army Cadet Force Detachment, TauntonImjin Barracks, GloucesterDenison Barracks, HermitageCaen Barracks, HohneMansergh Barracks, GuterslohInvicta Park Barracks, Maidstone Imjin Barracks, GloucesterAllenby Barracks Army Reserve Centre, BovingtonGibraltar Barracks, MinleyCherrytree Camp, ColchesterCwmbran Army Reserve Centre, CwmbranWestward House Army Reserve Centre, GrimsbyWestdown Camp, TilsheadKinloss Barracks, KinlossKendrew Barracks CottesmoreRedford Cavalry Barracks, EdinburghFox Barracks Army Reserve Centre, ChesterGorleston Army Cadet Force Detachment, Gorleston-on-SeaLivingstone Army Reserve Centre, LivingstonStanley Barracks, WarehamNormanby Army Cadet Force Detachment, MiddlesbroughAliwal Barracks, TidworthTamworth Army Cadet Force Detachment, TamworthMerville Barracks, ColchesterCanal Street Army Reserve Centre, WiganBatley Army Cadet Force Detachment, BatleyRAF WaddingtonRAF MarhamRAF UxbridgeRAF St MawganRAF BramptonRAF LossiemouthRAF CosfordRAF Leeming (two incidents)RAF AkrotiriMOD LynehamDSTL Porton Down Range Area

Ministry of Defence: Security

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2016 to Question 24141, how many (a) unauthorised entries to military bases and (b) thefts or losses of classified material which were reported in 2015 led to further action after an initial security risk assessment.

Mark Lancaster: The information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.However all security incidents are passed for assessment and investigation with further action taken as appropriate. This may include investigation by Military Police, Ministry of Defence Police or local constabulary where necessary.

Warships: Repairs and Maintenance

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on which Royal Navy ships were repairs carried out from March 2011 following the review of electrical and propulsion systems; and what the cost of those repairs was.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Independent Power and Propulsion System Performance Review, dated March 2011, highlighted sixteen recommendations to improve the reliability of the Type 45 Destroyer's Power and Propulsion system. Fourteen of the recommendations have been completed across the class.The remaining two recommendations, involving modifications to existing training procedures and documentation, have been incorporated into day to day business.Implementation of these recommendations has directly contributed to an improvement in reliability.All but one of the fourteen tasks were implemented under the Type 45 Destroyer Contract For Availability (CFA) arrangement with BAE Systems, at no additional cost to the Ministry of Defence.The only task not covered under the CFA contract cost a total of £24,000 for the six Type 45 ships.

Radioactive Materials: Transport

Owen Thompson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whose decision it was to cease displaying radioactive material hazard signs on vehicles carrying special nuclear materials.

Owen Thompson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on what date the decision to cease displaying radioactive material hazard signs on vehicles carrying special nuclear materials was made.

Owen Thompson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what changes to operating arrangements were made as a result of the decision to cease displaying radioactive material hazard signs on vehicles carrying special nuclear materials to ensure that relevant information is available to emergency services in the event of an accident.

Owen Thompson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for what reasons the decision was taken to cease displaying radioactive material hazard signs on vehicles carrying special nuclear materials.

Owen Thompson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what advice his Department sought from where on the decision as to whether to cease displaying radioactive material hazard signs on vehicles carrying special nuclear materials.

Penny Mordaunt: The Defence Equipment and Support organisation decided to cease displaying radioactive material hazard warning signs on vehicles carrying special nuclear materials in July 2011. Before implementing this decision we sought legal advice and notified the regulator. The change was implemented in 2012 in anticipation of the transition to a single type of vehicle for the transport of both nuclear weapons and special nuclear materials and was needed in order to maintain the policy to neither confirm nor deny the presence of nuclear weapons. No changes were required to operating arrangements as a result of this decision. The Ministry of Defence's arrangements for the safe transport of defence nuclear materials include the provision of information to the emergency services in the event of an incident; this does not rely on displaying radioactive material hazard warning signs.

Military Aircraft: Safety Measures

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Tornados and (b) Typhoons are fitted with the TCAAS II Collision Warning System.

Mr Philip Dunne: I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave on 3 February 2016 to Question 24361 and on 1 February 2016 to Question 24213, to the hon. Member for Islington South and Finsbury (Ms Thornberry).



24361-QnA extract on Tornado Aircraft
(Word Document, 14.24 KB)




24213-QnA extract on European Fifhter Aircraft
(Word Document, 14.15 KB)

MV Verity

Douglas Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which assets of his Department took part in the rescue of MV Verity on 29 January 2016.

Penny Mordaunt: No assets from the Ministry of Defence took part in the rescue of the MV Verity on 29 January 2016. There were no Royal Navy ships in the immediate vicinity.His Netherlands Majesty's Ship De Ruyter responded while in the area undergoing training and assisted the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.

Turkey: Kurds

Mr Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2016 to Question 23581, who the best official is to contact with credible reports from an external organisation of civilian casualties.

Penny Mordaunt: Any credible concerns or evidence relating to the possibility of civilian casualties caused by air strikes may be submitted to the Ministry of Defence Ministerial Correspondence Unit, Main Building, Whitehall, London, SW1A 2HB, or by email to ParliBranch-Treat-Official@mod.uk

Armed Forces: Deployment

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to review the harmony guidelines on periods of time away for service personnel.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence has no plans to review the harmony guidelines, which are set to ensure that there is an acceptable balance between the competing aspects of the lives of Service personnel.We recognise that when harmony guidelines are breached, this can have an impact on operational effectiveness. That is why we are committed to minimising the number of unnecessary breaches whilst at the same time maintaining operational capability.The Ministry of Defence publishes Monthly Service Personnel Statistics which include (at Table 10) the numbers of trained UK Regular Personnel breaching Individual Harmony Guidelines. The latest report, published on 14 January 2016, shows that as at 1 October 2015 the breach rate equated to 0.4% for the Naval Service, 2.6% for the Army and 1.3% for the Royal Air Force.https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-armed-forces-monthly-service-personnel-statistics-2015

Syria: Military Intervention

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of the UK military action in Syria in the last 12 months.

Michael Fallon: It is not possible to separate out the costs of UK military action in Syria from that of wider Counter-Daesh operations due to the inter-related nature of the UK's military activity in Iraq and Syria. Information on the net additional costs of Counter-Daesh operations during the financial year 2015-16 will be published in the Ministry of Defence's Annual Report and Accounts, with £75 million approved by Parliament at Main Estimates in July 2015 to meet the initial net additional costs of such operations in 2015-16. We will update this estimate in our 2015-16 Supplementary Estimates due to be laid before the House by Her Majesty's Treasury shortly.

Centre for Cyber Assessment: Staff

Steven Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members of his Department's staff have worked for the Centre for Cyber Assessment in each year since its inception.

Penny Mordaunt: The Ministry of Defence has contributed members of staff to the Centre for Cyber Assessment since it was established in 2013 but does not disclose the details of these arrangements.

Armed Forces

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the additional capabilities the Joint Force 2025 will provide to the armed forces.

Penny Mordaunt: Joint Force 2025 is about rebalancing our Armed Forces to strengthen the front line and maintain our military advantage. It will ensure that the Armed Forces are able to tackle a wider range of more sophisticated potential adversaries.Joint Force 2025 will be able to deploy a larger force more quickly or undertake a large number of smaller operations simultaneously and will include enhanced Counter Terrorism capabilities; more fighter jet squadrons; new Protector armed remotely piloted aircraft; Maritime Patrol Aircraft; increased Carrier capability and readily deployable STRIKE brigades. Joint Force 2025 will also benefit from greater investment in new areas of capability such as cyber and space.

Armed Forces

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the Strategic Defence and Security Review on the future size and power of the armed forces.

Michael Fallon: By 2025 we will have a highly capable expeditionary force of around 50,000. Joint Force 2025 will enable our Armed Forces to project power, deploy quickly and for longer periods and make the best use of new technology. We are investing in our front line by spending £178 billion over the next decade on equipment. We have committed to protecting the size of the Armed Forces by increasing the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force by a total of 700 personnel and not reducing the Army below 82,000.

Islamic State: Military Intervention

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2016 to Question 23290, whether it is his policy for the House to be given an opportunity to debate in advance any decision to (a) launch airstrikes against ISIL/Daesh targets outside Syria and Iraq and (b) deploy UK military personnel, embedded within other nations' armed forces, on military operations against ISIL/Daesh targets outside Syria and Iraq.

Michael Fallon: The Government is committed to the convention that, before UK troops are committed to conflict, Parliament should have an opportunity to debate the matter, except when such action is necessary in an emergency. The Government will inform the House of any exceptional operation where there has not been prior debate in Parliament, as the Prime Minister did on 7 September 2015 in relation to the precision airstrike that took place on 21 August 2015.The embedding of UK forces in the armed forces of allies is a valuable and commonplace activity governed through long standing and frequently reciprocal international arrangements. Although it is not policy for the House to be given the opportunity to debate their deployment we are committed to continued transparency about UK Service personnel embedded in other nations' armed forces on operations and I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 17 December 2015 (Official Report, column 97-98WS) which updated the House on this.

Home Office

Children: Deportation

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many former unaccompanied asylum-seeking children were removed to (a) Afghanistan, (b) Syria, (c) Libya, (d) Iraq, (e) Iran and (f) Albania in each year between 2007 and 2015; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 28 October 2015






An error has been identified in the written answer given on 25 November 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The table below provides the requested information: Removed in YearAfghanistanAlbaniaIran (Islamic Republic of)IraqLibya (Arab Republic)Syrian Arab RepublicGrand Total200746214316  2792008591141337  22320099857847  210201013831428 1202201118023122  226201283244161 1282013113313231 171201459361141 1112015154632  66Grand Total79157640205311616 The above data was produced on 26 October 2015. The information relating to removals of former unaccompanied asylum seeking children in 2015 details removals up to 30 June 2015.The number of former unaccompanied asylum-seeking children removed between 2007 and 31 December 2015, is shown in the following table:  Removal Destination Removed in YearAfghanistanAlbaniaIranIraqLibyaSyriaTotal20071593787561 - 601200815920321126 -  - 50920092329512153 -  - 492201032157969 -  - 456201143336457 - 15312012234354641 - 3382013269473721 - 3922014154452381 - 240201557106622 -  - 191Total2018100268657413,750 Note: This is live management information and subject to change.Removal of former unaccompanied asylum seeking children will only take place after their asylum claim has been finally determined, including any appeal hearing, and it has been established that there is no risk of persecution, or of a breach of the European Convention on Human Rights, upon return to their Home Country. After a former unaccompanied asylum seeking child is over eighteen years of age, and found not to be at risk upon return to their home country, their removal will be managed in line with our usual arrangements for the safe and secure return of failed asylum seekers who do not leave the UK voluntarily.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 28 October 2015



The table below provides the requested information: Removed in YearAfghanistanAlbaniaIran (Islamic Republic of)IraqLibya (Arab Republic)Syrian Arab RepublicGrand Total200746214316  2792008591141337  22320099857847  210201013831428 1202201118023122  226201283244161 1282013113313231 171201459361141 1112015154632  66Grand Total79157640205311616 The above data was produced on 26 October 2015. The information relating to removals of former unaccompanied asylum seeking children in 2015 details removals up to 30 June 2015.The number of former unaccompanied asylum-seeking children removed between 2007 and 31 December 2015, is shown in the following table:  Removal Destination Removed in YearAfghanistanAlbaniaIranIraqLibyaSyriaTotal20071593787561 - 601200815920321126 -  - 50920092329512153 -  - 492201032157969 -  - 456201143336457 - 15312012234354641 - 3382013269473721 - 3922014154452381 - 240201557106622 -  - 191Total2018100268657413,750 Note: This is live management information and subject to change.Removal of former unaccompanied asylum seeking children will only take place after their asylum claim has been finally determined, including any appeal hearing, and it has been established that there is no risk of persecution, or of a breach of the European Convention on Human Rights, upon return to their Home Country. After a former unaccompanied asylum seeking child is over eighteen years of age, and found not to be at risk upon return to their home country, their removal will be managed in line with our usual arrangements for the safe and secure return of failed asylum seekers who do not leave the UK voluntarily.

Vetting

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) CRB checks and (b) Disclosure and Barring Service checks have been carried out in each of the last 10 years.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 01 February 2016



The table below shows the total number of Standard and Enhanced certificates issued by the Disclosure and Barring Service over the last 10 years. The figures include applications for volunteer roles, which are processed free of charge.  OrganisationFinancial YearStandard & Enhanced Certificates IssuedCRB2005/062,776,378CRB2006/073,278,031CRB2007/083,323,402CRB2008/093,856,583CRB2009/104,301,313CRB2010/114,312,533CRB2011/124,074,241CRB (to Nov-12)2012/132,842,832DBS (from Dec-12)2012/131,223,773DBS2013/143,948,733DBS2014/154,111,856

Drugs: Misuse

Dr Paul Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that criminalisation of the use or possession of drugs, or injecting equipment, does not deter (a) people from seeking services because of fear of arrest and prosecution and (b) harm-reduction service providers from offering assistance because of concerns about their own legal liability.

Karen Bradley: The 2010 Drug Strategy contains a clear ambition that drug users will be supported to become drug free. The UK is a good example of how it is possible to achieve good health outcomes while retaining a criminal offence for drug possession. Service providers are encouraged to create a confidential environment for users to discuss their drug dependency. In addition, data on an individual’s substance misuse is collected in a way which preserves their confidentiality. We will shortly be publishing a new Drug StrategyThe Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and its regulations support healthcare providers, including drug treatment services, by providing exemptions for the supply of injecting equipment and other drug paraphernalia where there is evidence that their provision and use will help prevent harm or support recovery. The most recent example of this was the exemption made in 2014 to enable the lawful provision of foil.

Immigration: Biometrics

Craig Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what representations she has received over the standard service time of four weeks for processing a Biometric Residence Permit application for a Canadian citizen who has Indefinite Leave to Remain and has lived in the UK  for more than two decades; and what steps she is taking to reduce the standard service time for such applications.

James Brokenshire: In the absence of any case specific details, it is not possible to determine what, if any, representations have been made in relation to processing times for a Biometric Residence Permit application for a Canadian citizen with Indefinite Leave to RemainThe administrative requirements and service standards that apply to applicants for a no time limit endorsement or a replacement Biometric Residence Permit, are set out at: www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/settle-in-the-ukThis information is reviewed regularly, with a view to ensuring it is as clear as possible.UK Visas and Immigration is committed to the principles of continuous improvement and to applying these to ensure processes are efficient and effective.

Iran and Pakistan: Drugs

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information she holds on the number of drug traffickers who have been sentenced to death in (a) Iran and (b) Pakistan following conviction resulting from counter-narcotics activities supported by the UK in those countries.

Karen Bradley: The Government provides counter-narcotics assistance to a range of international partners, including Pakistan. The Government does not provide counter-narcotics assistance to Iran. There is no evidence to suggest that any drug traffickers have been sentenced to death in Pakistan where the conviction has resulted from counter-narcotics activities supported by the UK government.All our work is the subject of comprehensive and ongoing assessments of human rights risks, in line with Overseas Security & Justice Assistance (OSJA) guidance. This helps ensure that counter-narcotics assistance provided to countries which retain the death penalty is congruent with UK human rights principles. The Government strongly opposes the use of the death penalty in all circumstances. UK Ministers have and will continue to urge countries, including Iran and Pakistan, to repeal the death penalty and take action to ensure human rights are safeguarded.

Human Trafficking

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the correlation between smuggling rings which bring people into the EU and human trafficking gangs which exploit migrants for sex and slavery.

Karen Bradley: Organised crime groups are known to be involved in smuggling and trafficking operations, and in some cases both. We are working closely with operational partners including the National Crime Agency, Border Force and Immigration Enforcement, as well as partners across Europe and Africa, to develop the intelligence picture on both of these crime types.We will continue to monitor the development of links between these two crime types.We are working with partners across Europe and Africa, including through the Organised Immigration Crime Taskforce to identify and disrupt organised crime groups facilitating irregular migration in source and transit countries.

Internet: Bullying

Ms Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how her Department works with other governments to tackle internet harassment and trolling perpetrated by residents of other countries on UK citizens.

Karen Bradley: Holding answer received on 04 February 2016



Legislation is in place to deal with internet trolls, cyber-stalking and harassment, and perpetrators of grossly offensive, obscene or menacing behaviour.The Criminal Justice Act 2015, strengthened legislation in respect of two communications offences which can be used to prosecute misuse of social media: section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988, and section 127 of the Communications Act 2003. These amendments provide the police with additional time to investigate these offences, and increasing the maximum penalty for the former to two years imprisonment. We are continuing to invest in law enforcement capabilities at the national, regional and local levels to ensure delivery agencies have the capacity to deal with the increasing volume and sophistication of online crime. We have boosted the capabilities of the National Crime Agency’s National Cyber Crime Unit (NCCU), which has led and will continue to lead operations to disrupt serious cyber crime at scale, both domestically and internationally. This includes joint operations with industry and international law enforcement partners globally, to disrupt cyber criminals and protect UK citizens.

Immigration: Married People

Carol Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with spouses or partners with UK citizenship have (a) applied for, (b) been refused and (c) been granted indefinite leave to remain in each of the last five years.

James Brokenshire: The available information is given in the tables below: Grants and refusals of settlement (indefinite leave to remain) to spouses/partnerson the basis of marriage to/a relationship with a British citizen or settled personYearAll Partners (spouses and partners: UK or settled persons)of which:Sponsor is a British Citizen (1)GrantsRefusalsGrantsRefusals201053,1471,11646,572:201141,68453436,393:201237,39949832,741:201350,49877443,633:201428,23096824,042:Source: Immigration Statistics July - September 2015, Home Office, table se_04 and subsets of data in se_02https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/476908/settlement-q3-2015-tabs.odsTable notes(1) excludes unmarried partners: = Not available. Information on applications and refusals for spouses or partners of UK citizens is not available and could only be produced at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case records.Corresponding data for calendar year 2015 is planned to be published on 25 August 2016.

Immigration: Married People

Carol Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with spouses or partners with UK citizenship have been refused entry to the UK in each of the last five years.

James Brokenshire: The available information is shown in the attached table.Information on spouses or partners of UK citizens is not available as it is not held on centrally collated statistical databases and could only be produced at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case files.The latest quarterly Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in ‘Immigration Statistics, July - September 2015’, available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistics



Visa applications and resolutions table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 106.87 KB)

Immigration: Married People

Carol Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with spouses or partners with UK citizenship have applied to enter the UK in each of the last five years.

James Brokenshire: The available information is shown in the attached table.Information on spouses or partners of UK citizens is not available as it is not held on centrally collated statistical databases and could only be produced at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case files.The latest quarterly Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in ‘Immigration Statistics, July - September 2015’, available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistics



Visa applications and resolutions table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 106.87 KB)

Asylum

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what representations her Department has made to its contractors for the provision of asylum support services on potential breaches of contract by those contractors.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 04 February 2016



All Home Office contracts include performance standards, which are defined in the contract. These are the primary way in which the Home Office manages service delivery of the contracts.The Home Office has a rigorous contract compliance regime in place to ensure that the required performance standards expected of all providers, as defined in the contracts, are met. This includes monthly contract management and quarterly strategic review meetings, as well as regular daily discussions with COMPASS providers’ operational delivery managers about day to day issues.The Home Office investigates complaints it receives from service users and third parties and works with contractors to ensure that any issues raised are addressed promptly.

Drugs: Spain

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many convictions for drug smuggling have arisen from co-operation between UK and Spanish police in the last five years.

Karen Bradley: The UK works closely with the Spanish authorities on a range of organised crime issues, including drug trafficking. However, the Home Office does not hold information on how many drug trafficking convictions have arisen from co-operation between UK and Spanish police.

Prostitution: Leeds

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what safeguards she plans to put in place to ensure that the red-light district pilot scheme in Leeds does not encourage any increase in the levels of (a) pimping, (b) soliciting for sex, (c) kerb crawling or (d) brothel-keeping; and if she will make a statement.

Karen Bradley: We are committed to tackling the harm and exploitation that can be associated with prostitution, and believe that people who want to leave prostitution should be given every opportunity to escape it. Prostitution is a complex issue, which can impact on individuals and communities in many different ways, and we are clear that local areas and police forces are in the best position to identify and respond to issues around prostitution in their area. Police forces will be assisted in doing so by the National Policing Lead’s refreshed Policing Sex Work Strategy, due to be published this month, which will stress the priority of the public protection duty that the police have in relation to the safety of those involved in prostitution.

Home Office: Sky

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what meetings (a) Ministers and (b) officials in her Department have had with (i) James Murdoch and (ii) representatives from Sky UK Limited in each year since 2012.

Karen Bradley: Home Office Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of Ministerial meetings are passed to the Cabinet Office on a quarterly basis and are subsequently published on the Gov.uk website: http://data.gov.uk/dataset/ministerial-data-home-office

Offences against Children

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to paragraph 14 of the document Tackling Child Sexual Exploitation, published by the Government in March 2015, when her Department plans to consider an extension of the offence of wilful neglect.

Karen Bradley: As the honourable Member for Rotherham will recall, during the passage of the Serious Crime Bill in the last session of Parliament, the previous Government made a commitment to undertake a public consultation on the options for reporting child abuse and to lay a report before Parliament on the outcome of the consultation within 18 months of Royal Assent of the Serious Crime Act (i.e. by September 2016). This commitment was extended in March 2015, under the Government’s Tackling Child Sexual Exploitation Report, to consult on options for imposing sanctions for deliberate or reckless failures to take appropriate action in relation to child abuse or neglect, where it is a professional responsibility to do so.The Government will launch its consultation exercise in Spring 2016, to run for twelve weeks and will then consider carefully the need for any further statutory measures in the light of responses. This will enable the Government to lay proposals before Parliament by September 2016, as it has committed to do.

Vetting

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what reports she has received from (a) the Metropolitan Police and (b) other police forces of delays in processing Disclosure and Barring Service applications; and if she will make a statement.

Karen Bradley: The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) provides a formal monthly performance report to the Home Office and Home Office Ministers. This includes updates on the performance of police forces in meeting the Service Level Agreement (SLA) standards for the time taken to complete local disclosure checks.The DBS monitors the performance of all police disclosure units and works closely with any force, including the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), not meeting its targets. An MPS Gold Group is overseeing the recovery plan in place at the MPS and Home Office officials maintain a close oversight of the progress being made by assessing weekly reports and through regular attendance at the Group.It is a priority of the MPS, DBS and the Home Office to see improvements as quickly as possible and I will continue to monitor the situation closely.

Police Stations: Closures

Jim McMahon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 12 June 2015 to Question 1705, if she will make it her policy to collate information centrally on the number of police stations and police custody cells that closed.

Mike Penning: The Government has no plans to place an unnecessary bureaucratic burden on locally elected Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) or Chief Constables by requiring this information to be reported centrally. Decisions about the most effective use of available resources, including the number and operating hours of police stations and the number of custody cells, are a matter for the Police and Crime Commissioner and Chief Constable locally (the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime and the Commissioner in the case of the Metropolitan Police and the Corporation and the Commissioner in the case of the City of London Police), tailored to the needs of the local community.

Mining: Industrial Disputes

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will establish an independent inquiry into the cases of 792 miners in Wales who were arrested during the miners' strike in 1984.

Mike Penning: Holding answer received on 05 February 2016



There are no plans to establish an independent inquiry into the cases of 792 miners in Wales who were arrested during the miners' strike in 1984.

Asylum

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which were the top 10 countries of origin of asylum seekers accommodated in (a) Wales and (b) the UK in each of the last six years.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 08 February 2016



The Home Office publishes regional data on asylum seekers in receipt of Section 95 Support (dispersed accommodation and subsistence only) by nationality in Table as_17q (Asylum data tables Volume 4) of the quarterly Immigration Statistics release. The top ten nationalities of asylum seekers supported in Wales and the UK as a whole, in each of the last six years, are given in the attached tables.A copy of the latest release, Immigration Statistics July – September 2015, is available from https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/home-office/series/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release



Asylum seekers in receipt of Section 95 					
(Excel SpreadSheet, 12.09 KB)

Asylum

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many individual unique addresses asylum seekers were accommodated in by her Department in each constituency in the UK in each of the last six years.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 08 February 2016



The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. Accommodation for asylum seekers is provided through third party accommodation providers under the COMPASS contracts. The Government does not retain information on the number of unique addresses as there is no direct contractual relationship between the Home Office and private landlords. The Home Office publishes quarterly data on the number of asylum seekers in Section 95 dispersal accommodation, by local authority. Data regarding the precise locations of asylum applicants cannot be provided at ward or constituency level as to do so would incur disproportionate costs and be precluded by the provisions of the Data Protection Act, given that individuals could reasonably be identified by such data.

Members: Correspondence

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to respond to the letter to her Department from the hon. Member for Wolverhampton South West of 22 December 2015 on the subject of constituents' British Nationality, reference ZA1837.

James Brokenshire: A response was provided on 5 February 2016.

Marriage Certificates: Mothers

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if her Department will announce a public consultation to determine the level of support for including mothers' names on marriage certificates.

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department has taken to amend UK marriage certificates to include mothers' names.

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she has taken to address the exclusion of mothers' names on marriage certificates.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 08 February 2016



There is agreement that the names of both parents should be included in the marriage entry. The Home Office has, therefore, been working with all interested parties to consider the most efficient and effective way to achieve this. Doing so is likely to require additional funding and changes to legislation, IT systems and administrative processes. A timetable will be confirmed for changes as soon as there is an opportunity to legislate on this matter.

Migrant Workers: Nurses

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what evidence her Department has received from the Migration Advisory Committee on whether nurses should remain on the Government's Shortage Occupation List.

James Brokenshire: The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has not yet submitted its advice on whether nurses should remain on the Shortage Occupation List. The MAC will publish the report shortly after it is submitted to the Government. We will consider the findings carefully before making any final decision.

Refugees: Syria

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if the Prime Minister will increase the Government's commitment beyond 20,000 on the number of Syrian refugees it plans to offer asylum to.

Richard Harrington: The UK has already committed to resettling 20,000 refugees from the region during this parliament through the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement scheme, and we have no plans to increase this at the present time.Resettlement is only one strand of our efforts in the region, and is complemented by the UK’s significant humanitarian aid programme, and our diplomatic efforts to end the conflict. We believe this approach is the best way to ensure that the UK’s help has the greatest impact for the majority of refugees who remain in the region and their host countries.

Scotland Office

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Margaret Ferrier: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the effect of the increase in state pension age on women resident in Scotland who were born in the 1950s; and when the last such discussion was.

David Mundell: I and my officials have regular engagement with colleagues in the Department for Work and Pensions on a range of important matters, including the State Pension. The hon Member will be aware of the parliamentary debate that took place on 1 February where my hon Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Mr Shailesh Vara) set out the Government’s position on this issue. State Pension age changes are part of a wider package of reforms being implemented by this Government. All women affected by faster equalisation under the Pensions Act 2011 will reach State Pension age after the introduction of the new State Pension. The new State Pension will benefit many women who have been historically worse off under the current system, with 650,000 women receiving £8 more per week (on average) in the first 10 years, due to the new State Pension valuation of their National Insurance record. Encouraging and enabling those who can work to work for longer is a Government priority. In work, out of work and disability benefits are available for those individuals who are unable to work. Those who have caring responsibilities may be eligible for National Insurance credits towards their State Pension.

Balance of Trade: EU Countries

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what the value of the most recent trade surplus or deficit between Scotland and the EU.

David Mundell: The trade position of a country reflects exports minus imports and includes goods and services. This comprehensive measure is only available for the UK as a whole. HMRC regional trade statistics provides just a partial picture of Scotland’s trade performance as it only takes account of goods and not services. According to the latest available data, Scotland’s trade performance on goods for the year including Q3 2015 with the EU shows a surplus, with a recorded value of £2.1 billion.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

Mobile Homes: Energy

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 22396, on park homes and the Warm Homes Discount, what the budget is for expenditure on the pilot scheme and what proportion is being funded by energy suppliers.

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 22396, on park homes and the Warm Homes Discount, when that pilot scheme started; when that pilot scheme is expected to end; and what she plans the terms of eligibility for park home residents to apply to that pilot scheme will be.

Andrea Leadsom: Energy suppliers participating in the Warm Home Discount this year (2015/16) have been given the voluntary option to provide a rebate to mobile home residents who meet the qualifying benefit as part of the Industry Initiatives section of the scheme. This scheme called the Park Homes Warm Home Discount pilot scheme is funded by obligated energy suppliers in the scheme and is open to permanent park home residents in England, Scotland or Wales. Residents on a Park Home site who pay for their electricity through their park site owner and meet one of the qualifying eligibility criteria can apply. If successful, residents will receive a one-off rebate of £140 towards their electricity bill.The pilot scheme opened in November and is only open for a limited period and once a certain number of applications have been received and are successful, the pilot scheme will close. The pilot is currently expected to deliver just over 1000 rebates. This translates to just over £140,000 of support being delivered before the 31st March 2016.

Mobile Homes: Energy

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 22397, on park homes and smart meters, what the maximum size is of park home sites which fall within the definition of small non-domestic business sites for the roll-out of smart meters; and what steps are being taken to ensure that residents at such sites are offered a smart meter.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Hydroelectric Power: Feed-in Tariffs

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how the response provided by the British Hydropower Association to her Department's Consultation on feed-in tariffs was taken into account by her Department in the assumptions used to determine that hydropower load factors are site specific.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Cabinet Office

Government: Debt Collection

Louise Haigh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much his Department has spent on legal advice relating to the Debt Market Integrator.

Matthew Hancock: The Cabinet Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Shared Services Connected: Consultants

Louise Haigh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent estimate he has made of the amount spent on consultancy support for Independent Shared Services Centres; and for what reasons the consultants were so engaged.

Matthew Hancock: The Cabinet Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Voluntary Work: Young People

Tim Loughton: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many teenagers have (a) commenced and (b) graduated a National Citizenship Service programme in each of the last five years.

Mr Rob Wilson: Since National Citizenship Service (NCS) began, over 200,000 young people have taken part in this life changing opportunity. NCS is the fastest growing youth movement in this country for a century, with a 46% increase in the number of participants between 2013 and 2014.YearParticipants Commence NCSParticipants Graduated20118,4006,800201226,00022,600201339,60032,300201457,80050,900The participant figures for 2015 will be published with the 2015 evaluation in due course.

Voluntary Work: Young People

Tim Loughton: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much has been spent on the National Citizenship Service programme in each of the last five years.

Mr Rob Wilson: The Autumn 2015 Spending Review announced over £1 billion to expand the National Citizen Service and the ambition is for NCS to cover 60% of all 16 year olds by 2020/21. The following table shows the funding provided by Government for the delivery of NCS since the programme commenced.YearGovernment Funding2011/12£21 million2012/13£62 million2013/14£84 million2014/15£130 million

Voluntary Work: Young People

Tim Loughton: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment of the value for money of the National Citizenship Service his Department has commissioned or reviewed.

Mr Rob Wilson: Value for money assessments take place yearly as part of the independent evaluation of the National Citizen Service (NCS).The most recent 2014 evaluation shows that every £1 spent on NCS generates up to £3.98 of social benefits. This figure quantifies a range of benefits, including the time participants spend volunteering on their social action projects.It is estimated by the NCS Trust that NCS participants have volunteered 8 million hours since the programme began in 2011.

Voluntary Work: Young People

Tim Loughton: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, by what method his Department assesses the financial returns of the  National Citizenship Service; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Rob Wilson: National Citizen Service (NCS) Trust receives an annual grant from Cabinet Office. In line with National Audit Office recommendations, the NCS Trust delivers an Annual Reconciliation Statement setting out how funds have been spent. The Cabinet Office publishes details of NCS funding in its Annual Report and the programme is independently evaluated to assess impact and value for money.

Department for Education

Languages: Education

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many entrants there were for GCSE and A-level (a) Gujarati and (b) Hindi by (i) exam board and (ii) each region and constituent part of the UK in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: Holding answer received on 04 February 2016



The Department for Education produces statistics for England only. The table attached provides information on the number of GCSE entries in Gujarati of pupils by examining board and region between 2010/11 to 2014/15.[1], [2] The table below shows the number of entries in this region and across England as a whole[3].Number of A level entries in Gujarati by pupils aged 16 to 18[4] in institutions[5]YearSubjectExam boardEngland2015GujaratiOCRSupp2014GujaratiOCR72013GujaratiOCR42012GujaratiOCR72011GujaratiOCR9Hindi is not currently offered at GCSEs and A Levels. Therefore no information is available on GCSE or A level Hindi qualification over the last five years.[1] Coverage is for all state-funded schools (including academies and CTCs) in England[2] Figure has been suppressed due to low numbers (1 or 2 pupils) or where secondary suppression has been applied.[3] Figure has been suppressed due to low numbers (1 or 2 pupils)[4] Covers students aged 16, 17 or 18 at the start of each academic year, i.e. 31 August.[5] If qualifications taken by a student are in the same subject area and similar in content ‘discounting’ rules have been applied to avoid double counting qualifications (see SFR main text) at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/a-level-and-other-level-3-results-2013-to-2014-revised 



No. of GCSE entries in Gujarati 2010/11 to 2014/15
(Excel SpreadSheet, 13.76 KB)

Child Protection Taskforce

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many times the Child Protection Taskforce announced by the Prime Minister on 24 June 2015 has met; and when that taskforce plans to publish its first report.

Edward Timpson: Holding answer received on 04 February 2016



The Child Protection Implementation Taskforce has met on four occasions since June 2015. As set out in the terms of reference, Taskforces are responsible for monitoring and driving the delivery of the Government’s priorities. The Department for Education published a paper in January 2016 ‘Children’s Social Care reform: A vision for change’[1] which outlines the three areas of work undertaken by the Taskforce thus far.As it is responsible for monitoring implementation rather than developing policy, the Taskforce does not have any plans to publish a report at this time.[1]https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/491968/Childrens_social_care_reform_a_vision_for_change.pdf

Teachers: Resignations

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many teachers below retirement age left teaching in academic year (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15.

Nick Gibb: In 2013-14, 42,050 full-time equivalent teachers left service from state funded schools in England. Of these teachers, 10,500 retired with an award of pension benefits. In the same year 44,900 teacher entered the profession. In 2012-13, there were 44,400 entrants and 39,050 leavers, of which 11,230 retired.There is no fixed retirement age for teachers but the normal pension age for Teachers’ Pensions is either 60 or 65 depending on when the teacher last entered the profession.Information on the number of teachers entering and leaving service from state funded schools in each year is published in table C1b of the additional tables in the School Workforce in England Statistical First Release, November 2014. The table shows entrants and leavers for each year from 2010-11 to 2013-14. This publication is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/school-workforce-in-england-november-2014

Primary Education: Admissions

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to increase the number of primary school places in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England.

Edward Timpson: Holding answer received on 04 February 2016



Supporting local authorities in their responsibility to ensure sufficient school places in their area is one of the Department’s top priorities. That is why we have committed to investing £23 billion in school buildings between 2016 and 2021 to create 600,000 new school places, open 500 free schools and address essential maintenance needs.We allocate basic need funding to local authorities to create the new places required, based on data supplied by authorities themselves. Coventry received £41 million in basic need funding between 2011 and 2015. Local authorities across the West Midlands received a combined total of £305 million over the same period. This support helped to add more than 3,500 primary school places in Coventry between 2010 and 2014, with many more delivered since then and in the pipeline. Nearly 25,000 primary places were added across the West Midlands during this period, and over 300,000 nationally.The free schools programme is also helping create school places where they are needed; the Sidney Stringer Primary Academy opened in Coventry in September 2015, and will provide 420 primary places once at full capacity.

Home Education

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of regional school commissioners' powers for identifying unregistered pupils being taught at home.

Edward Timpson: The role of Regional Schools Commissioners is to work with school leaders to promote and monitor academies and free schools. The list of their responsibilities does not include unregistered pupils or home education.

Free Schools: South West

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what actions she will take to improve the quality of education provision by free schools in the South West.

Edward Timpson: The Government is committed to achieving educational excellence everywhere so that children in every part of the country, regardless of their background and circumstances, have access to an outstanding education.Free schools benefit from the ability to act quickly to improve standards. The Regional Schools Commissioner (RSC) for the South West is responsible for taking action to improve underperforming free schools in the region. Where a free school is identified by Ofsted as under-performing the RSC takes swift action, working with the school to develop robust plans for improvement including, for example, appointing strong new sponsors to run the school.

Schools: Registration

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many unregistered schools there are in England and Wales.

Edward Timpson: We are currently investigating 21 institutions that may be operating as unregistered independent schools in England and have not applied for registration. However, this number often changes as new settings are established and existing ones close, or are confirmed not to be operating as schools. We have taken robust steps to tackle unregistered schools and improve safeguarding which includes being clear it is a criminal offence to operate an unregistered independent school. All these institutions have been warned that it is a criminal offence to operate as an unregistered school. We are asking Ofsted to visit and to prepare cases for prosecution as necessary.We do not hold data on the numbers in Wales as the Department is not the regulatory body for independent schools in Wales.

Politics: Education

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons the proposed Politics draft AS and A level subject content published by her Department contains no substantive references to feminist ideology or the political achievements of women.

Nick Gibb: The final politics A level content will give all students the opportunity to study the core ideas of feminism, and will set out the female theorists whose work students should study. The consultation on the draft politics A level content closed on 15 December 2015; awarding bodies are currently making changes to the content to respond to the views expressed. The Government will publish its response to the consultation shortly.

Schools: ICT

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department gave on ICT contracts to schools who were part of the Building Schools for the Future programme.

Edward Timpson: Local authorities were responsible for the local delivery of the Building Schools for the Future programme (BSF). They planned, procured and continue to manage the BSF school buildings, including ICT contracts. Advice and guidance on ICT Contracts was provided to local authorities by Partnerships for Schools: http://www.partnershipsforschools.org.uk/library/BSF-archive/BSF-ICT.html

English Baccalaureate

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the cost to the public purse has been of the roll-out of the English Baccalaureate to date; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: Holding answer received on 04 February 2016



The English Baccalaureate measure was introduced in 2010. The EBacc defines an academic core of subjects, including GCSEs in English, maths, science, humanities, and languages. Schools have been able to deliver significant increases in the take up of EBacc subjects over the last 5 years without requiring additional funding to do so.EBacc entry has increased significantly, from 22% in 2010 to 39% in 2015. EBacc achievement has also increased, from 15% in 2010 to 24% in 2015.The Department funds a range of support for teachers including 35 maths hubs which support maths teachers, the National Science Learning Network to provide high quality professional development for science teachers and the Network of Excellence for computing to provide professional development for computing teachers through a network of master teachers. English teachers have benefitted from the funding provided to the Royal Shakespeare Company, who produced and provided to all state-funded secondary schools a free copy of its RSC Shakespeare Toolkit for Teachers, and Poetry by Heart to help teachers deliver inspirational poetry teaching.

Academies: Risk Management

Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how accurate prior actuarial analysis of the Risk Protection Arrangement was in forecasting the scheme's overall loss as a result of flooding.

Edward Timpson: The Risk Protection Arrangement provision includes an allowance within its benchmarks for large storm or flood events, based on the actuarial work undertaken, which last took place on data as at 31 August 2015. Actuarial analysis is not intended to provide forecasts for individual events, so it would not be meaningful to compare the analysis with recent events.

Academies: Risk Management

Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the long term liabilities of the Risk Protection Arrangement; and how her Department has estimated the total funds needed to cover these liabilities.

Edward Timpson: The Secretary of State for Education has engaged with professional actuaries both from the private sector and Government, to provide an actuarial assessment of the long term liabilities applicable to the Risk Protection Arrangement (RPA).The estimated total funds needed to cover these liabilities are modelled on the current RPA membership and expected future pupil numbers of the academy trusts which are forecast to join the RPA.

English Baccalaureate

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what submissions she has received from teachers' representatives on the rollout of the English Baccalaureate in the last year; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: Holding answer received on 04 February 2016



On 3 November 2015 we launched a consultation seeking views on how to ensure that pupils receive a rigorous education in the core academic subjects; an education that includes the English Baccalaureate GCSEs: maths, English, science, a foreign language and history or geography. The consultation closed on 29 January.Alongside the consultation, we have discussed the English Baccalaureate with more than 50 head teachers from schools or academy trusts in roundtable discussions, individual meetings or phone conversations. We have also met representatives from teaching unions to discuss the EBacc consultation.We will publish the results of the consultation and the government’s response later in the spring. This will include information about the submissions received from teachers’ representatives.

Children: Day Care

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the Government plans to extend childcare support to cover the school holidays.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The government is fully committed to ensuring that sufficient, flexible provision of childcare is made available to support hard working parents.All childcare providers are able to offer the existing 15 hour free entitlement for 3 and 4 year olds during the school holidays, and a number of providers already do so. We will be consulting on proposals with regard to the new entitlement to 30 hours of free childcare, including how this offer can be made more flexible for working parents. We will work closely with the Local Government Association, local authorities and childcare providers to identify and remove barriers to flexible provision, including offering childcare during the school holidays.In addition, my Rt. Hon friend the Sectary of State announced on the 6 October 2015 that parents will be granted a new ‘right to request’ wraparound and / or holiday childcare at their school. Childcare providers will also be given the right to request use of school sites outside school-hours to provide this care. The consultation on the ‘right to request’ opened on the 7 December and closes on 29 February 2016.

Teachers: Veterans

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many places were allocated to each Troops to Teachers cohort.

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many applications were made for each of the Troops to Teachers cohort; and how many places in each cohort have been filled.

Nick Gibb: Initially the Ministry of Defence’s resettlement contractor was responsible for recruiting trainees to the programme. Recruitment for the programme has been the responsibility of the University of Brighton.For Cohort One, 293 applications were received and 41 trainees began the programme.For Cohort Two, 196 applications were received and 52 trainees began the programme.For Cohort Three, 62 applications were received and 51 trainees began the programme.

Teachers: Veterans

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many teachers who were trained through the Troops to Teachers scheme are employed in state-funded schools.

Nick Gibb: As the Troops to Teachers programme is an employment-based Initial Teacher Training route, all trainees are employed in state-funded schools throughout their training. The first cohort of trainees completed the training programme in December 2015. 28 of the 29 trainees who completed the programme achieved Qualified Teacher Status with the remaining individual working towards it. A further two trainees plan to re-join their training in the coming months.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress her Department has made in conducting an audit of educational provision within children and adolescent mental health service tier 4 settings.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Department for Education has been working with the National Health Service to determine the scope and nature of the audit of educational provision within Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) tier 4 settings, as a result of the Health Select Committee report on CAMHS in 2014. We will release the outcomes of this audit in due course.

Schools: Admissions

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many appeals were heard by the Education Funding Agency and Local Government Ombudsman in relation to admissions decisions made by (a) academies, (b) academies which were previously maintained schools and (c) free schools in each year since 2009-10; how many such appeals were upheld; which schools were subject to those appeals; and what proportion of academies and free schools those schools represent.

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many appeals were made by civil society organisations to the Education Funding Agency and Local Government Ombudsman in relation to admissions decisions made by (a) academies, (b) academies which were previously maintained schools and (c) free schools in each year since 2009-10.

Edward Timpson: Holding answer received on 05 February 2016



Parents have the right to complain to an admission authority regarding its decision to refuse admission of a child. The admission authority must establish an independent appeals panel to hear the complaint. On behalf of the Secretary of State, the Education Funding Agency (EFA) will investigate complaints about the appeals process operated by independent appeal panels for academies and free schools.The table below provides information on admission appeals complaints assessed as being in scope for investigation by EFA since April 2012, when it was established. EFA has no record of admission appeal complaints in the last four financial years from any Civil Society Organisations.The Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) handles the appeals process operated in respect of maintained schools. The Department does not hold information on the number of admission appeals complaints heard by the LGO. The LGO should hold this information.  Financial year 2012-13Financial year 2013-14Financial year 2014-152015-16 Current financial year to datePQ25402 (A) Total number of admission appeal complaints about academies investigated by EFA127163144203PQ25402 (B) Total number of admission appeal complaints about academies which were previously maintained schools investigated by EFA115150130193PQ25402 (C) Total number of admission appeal complaints about free schools investigated by EFANot recorded centrally for this financial year484Total number of admission appeal complaints fully upheld by EFA15132615Name of schools where EFA has investigated an admission appeal complaint subject to appealsSee attachmentSee attachmentSee attachmentSee attachmentTotal appeals complaints investigated, as a proportion of open academies and free schools5% (of 2,796)4% (of 3,874)3% (of 4,881)4% (of 5,447)

Schools: Admissions

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and which (a) academies and (b) free schools applied to the Secretary of State to have their funding arrangements changed to allow them to vary their school admissions requirements in each year since 2009-10; and which such applications were approved.

Edward Timpson: Holding answer received on 05 February 2016



In total, between 2012 and 2016, three requests have been considered by the Education Funding Agency (EFA) to vary in-year admissions arrangements of academies and free schools outside of the normal admissions timeframe. One relates to an academy and two to free schools. The two applications from the free schools were approved. The EFA was established in April 2012. We do not hold figures relating to this question prior to this date.The table below sets out the number of requests from academies and free schools considered and approved by the EFA from 2012-13: Requests to vary admissions requirements AcademiesFree SchoolsApproved2012-130002013-140002014-150112015-16 Current financial year to date i.e. April 15 to Jan 16111Total122

Free School Meals: Barnsley

Mr David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Answer of 15 April 2013, Official Report, column 130W, if she will reproduce the information in that Answer for each year from 2012-13 to date.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Holding answer received on 08 February 2016



The previous answer referred to in this question provided data on eligibility for free school meals in Barnsley Central constituency and local authorities in South Yorkshire in 2013. Information about the number and proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals in each local authority can be found in tables 8a, 8b and 8c of each of the ‘Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics’ series of statistics for 2013[1], 2014[2] and 2015.[3]Specific information about Barnsley Central constituency can be calculated from the school level underlying data of each of these three publications.[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2013 - click on Local authority tables. For constituency level information, use underlying data file ‘School_level_schools_pupils_2013’. Column U contains the parliamentary constituency and column DP contains free school meal eligibility figures.[2] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2014 - click on local authority tables. For constituency level information, use underlying data file ‘SFR15_2014_school_level_pupils_UD’. Column V contains the parliamentary constituency and column EC contains free school meal eligibility figures.[3] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2015 - click on local authority tables. For constituency level information, use underlying data file ‘SFR16_2015_school_level_pupils_UD’. Column V contains the parliamentary constituency and column EC contains free school meal eligibility figures.

Secondary Education: Greater London

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will rank secondary schools in each London borough by the proportion of pupils who have English as an additional language; and what type each such school is.

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will rank primary schools in each London borough by the proportion of pupils who have English as an additional language; and what type each such school is.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Information on the number and proportion of number of pupils whose first language is known or believed to be other than English is available in the underlying data of the schools, pupils and their characteristics: January 2015 statistics[1]. This data also contains information on the type and location of each school and it can be used to rank the schools.[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2015 - click on Underlying Data, open file ‘SFR16_2015_Schools_Pupils’ and the information on English as an additional language is in column GB.

Primary Education: Greater London

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will rank primary schools in each London borough by the proportion of children who are eligible for the purpose of determining the pupil premium; and what type each such school is.

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will rank each secondary school in each London borough by the proportion of children who are eligible for the purpose of determining the pupil premium; and what type each such school is.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Holding answer received on 08 February 2016



Information on the number of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is available in the final school level pupil premium allocations, which are published on the department’s website.[1] These figures can be used with the total number of pupils in each school (information which can also be found in the same publication) to calculate the proportion eligible for the pupil premium.[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-2015-to-2016-allocations - please click on ‘Pupil premium final allocations 2015 to 2016 by school in England’

Primary Education: Greater London

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will rank primary schools in each London borough by the actual percentage change in the number of children known to be eligible for and claiming free school meals in (a) 2010 and (b) 2015; and what type each such school is.

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will rank secondary schools in each London borough by the actual and percentage change in the number of children known to be eligible for and claiming free school meals in (a) 2010 and (b) 2015; and what type each such school is.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Information about the number and percentage of pupils eligible for free school meals and claiming them in each school in London can be found in the underlying data of the Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics statistics for 2010[1] and 2015[2] respectively. These data contain information about the type and phase of school and in which local authority they are located. Change in free school meal eligibility rates for schools can be calculated and ranked from this information.[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2010 - click on underlying data and see columns EH and EI for free school meal data.[2] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2015 - click on underlying data, open the ‘SFR16_2015_Schools_Pupils’ file and the free school meal data is in columns EC and ED.

Children: Day Care

Melanie Onn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many state registered foster carers her Department estimates will be eligible for the Government's proposed free 30 hours of childcare.

Edward Timpson: Foster carers will be able to access the existing 15 hour early education entitlement for three-and four-year olds for both their foster children and their own children. In addition, two year olds who are looked after by a local council or have left care under a special guardianship order, child arrangements order or adoption order are also entitled to 15 hours of early education.Foster carers will be able to access the extended entitlement for three-and four-year olds for their own children provided that they meet the minimum income requirement. This means that foster parents should be earning the equivalent to 16 hours a week at National Minimum or Living Wage and their income should not exceed £100,000. This includes employed and self-employed parents.Since foster carers are separately funded for the care of foster children, they will not be able to access the extended entitlement for their foster children. This is in line with the treatment of foster carers under Tax-Free Childcare, tax credits and Universal Credit.

Child Protection Taskforce

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, who sits on the Child Protection Task Force; and if she will publish dates and minutes of meetings of that body to date.

Edward Timpson: Membership of the Child Protection Implementation Taskforce can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-announces-new-taskforce-to-transform-child-protectionInformation relating to the proceedings of recent meetings of Implementation Taskforces is not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.

Park View Educational Trust

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 7 September 2015 to Question 8250, when the three academies in the Park View Educational Trust (a) applied for and (b) were granted permission to employ teachers without qualified teacher status.

Edward Timpson: The Park View Educational Trust formally sought for permission to employ teachers without qualified teacher status on 7 March 2013. This was granted on 15 March 2013.

Children: Day Care

Melanie Onn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many paid carers her Department estimates will be eligible for the Government's proposed free 30 hours of childcare.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The extended entitlement is intended to support working parents with the cost of childcare, enabling them to return to work or work additional hours if they wish to do so. Families where both parents work or one parent works in a single parent household will be eligible for these additional hours. In recognition of the particular challenges that paid carers can face in relation to childcare, the Childcare Bill allows for parents in certain circumstances to be regarded as being in work, for example, those parents who have caring responsibilities.Households where one parent is working and one parent is being paid Carer’s Allowance or Universal Credit’s Carer Element will be able to access the extended entitlement provided the working parent meets the income eligibility requirements. This includes households where a parent is caring for their own three or four year old child where the child is in receipt of Disability Living Allowance or is certified blind.In relation to single parents with a disabled child, where that parent meets the income eligibility requirements, they will also be able to access the extended entitlement. Parents who do not work will continue to receive Carer’s Allowance or Universal Credit.It is also important to remember that all paid carers will be able to access the existing 15 hour early education entitlement for three and four year olds and the 15 hour early education entitlement for two year olds if they meet the eligibility criteria. More detail can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/help-with-childcare-costs/free-childcare-and-education-for-2-to-4-year-oldsThe Department does not hold information on the number of households with three or four year old children where one partner (or the sole parent in a lone parent family) meets the income eligibility criteria and is in receipt of benefits relating to caring responsibilities.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Plastics: Waste

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government has taken to reduce plastic waste; and what assessment she has made of the contribution of the circular economy to reducing that waste.

Rory Stewart: The Government has taken a number of steps to reduce plastic waste. These include the introduction of a 5p charge on single use carrier bags, which is expected to deliver a reduction of 70-80% in bag usage. The UK Producer Responsibility (Packaging Waste) Regulations require producers of packaging to ensure that a proportion of the packaging they handle is recovered and recycled. As recycling targets become more challenging, the incentive on businesses to minimise the packaging they use increases. We encourage packaging producers to use a minimum level of packaging through the implementation of the Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations which require that packaging should not exceed what is needed to ensure that products are safe, hygienic and acceptable to the consumer. The third phase of the Courtauld Commitment aims to further optimise packaging, reduce packaging waste and improve recyclability. It aims to deliver a 3% relative reduction to the amount of packaging generated by signatories. Working through the Waste and Resources Action Programme we have developed and delivered a number of activities in support of both the use of recycled materials in new products, and on activities to stimulate its demand.For example, the Plastics Industry Recycling Action Plan has identified key actions that need to take place across the whole supply chain to ensure that recycling plastics packaging can be done sustainably. This includes design for recyclability, collections and sorting, reprocessing and development of sustainable end markets.Developing and securing sustainable end markets for recycled materials is key to delivering a circular economy.

Africa: Ivory

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what support the Government (a) has provided and (b) plans to provide to governments in Africa for eradicating the killing of animals for the ivory trade.

Rory Stewart: The UK Government works closely with African and other countries to promote the conservation of the world's wildlife, including through galvanising action to end the illegal trade in ivory. We hosted the London Conference on the Illegal Wildlife Trade in February 2014, and supported the Government of Botswana in its hosting of a follow-up Conference in March 2015. The UK actively supports the African-led Elephant Protection Initiative, launched in the margins of the London Conference, which now has eleven African countries as members. We have committed over £1 million to this initiative over the last two years. Defra’s Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund has made grants to 19 projects in its first round, including eight projects in Africa, worth £2.1 million, tackling the ivory trade. Projects to be funded under a second round will be announced shortly. The UK is also providing training in counter-poaching activity in Gabon, through the Ministry of Defence, and has provided support for judicial capacity building in skills related to tackling the illegal trade in wildlife products in Kenya and Tanzania.

Department of Health

Health Professions: Training

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment (a) his Department and (b) Health Education England have made of the effect on the numbers of (i) nurses, (ii) midwives and (iii) other health allied professional staff undertaking postgraduate and post-registration qualifications of the introduction of student loans to fund pre-registration qualifications.

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of how many (a) student nurses, (b) student midwives and (c) allied health students would have been funded by Health Education England in (i) 2017-18, (ii) 2018-19 and (iii) 2019-20 under the current NHS bursary scheme.

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the potential additional costs to the public purse of the Resource Accounting Budget charge resulting from the introduction of the new student loan system.

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of how many additional (a) student nurses, (b) student midwives and (c) allied health students will be funded in (i) 2017-18, (ii) 2018-19 and (iii) 2019-20 by the new student loans system.

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate (a) his Department and (b) Health Education England has made of the potential costs of providing placements for additional nursing student numbers following the introduction of student loans.

Ben Gummer: Training commissions for the National Health Service are determined annually through Health Education England (HEE) workforce planning process. It is not possible to give estimates at this stage of students who will be funded from 2017 onwards, either on the bursary or loans system. HEE produce an annual Workforce Plan for England, we expect the 2016/17 plan to be published shortly. This will include details of the nursing, midwifery and allied health professions commissions for 2016/17.  In December 2015, HEE set out their proposed Education and Training Commissions for 2016/17 in their Commissioning and Investment Plan 2016/17 which is available at: https://www.hee.nhs.uk/sites/default/files/documents/HEE%20commissioning%20and%20investment%20plan.pdf  HM Treasury estimate that the Resource Accounting and Budgeting charge for full time tuition fee and maintenance loans, and part time fee loans, is between 20% and 25%.The Department will shortly run a public consultation on how the reforms can be most successfully implemented. As part of this, an economic impact assessment and equality impact assessment will be published. The consultation and assessments will include the effect on the numbers of students in these professions undertaking postgraduate and post-registration qualifications.

Mental Health Services: Children

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many young people aged 17 or under were admitted to hospital for each type of mental health condition in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

Alistair Burt: While information on the number of people admitted to hospital is not available centrally the table does give the number of Finished Admission Episodes with a primary diagnosis of mental health conditions, broken down into sub-groups, for patients aged 0 to 17 years, in each year from 2005-06 to 2014-15. Diagnosis DescriptionYear2005-062006-072007-082008-092009-102010-112011-122012-132013-142014-15Dementia213442111-Other organic including symptomatic mental disorders985194376082939491110Mental and behavioural disorders due to psychoactive substances5,0274,7054,3323,4623,5803,0052,5242,0612,0872,030Mental and behavioural disorders due to tobacco31-11-612121411Schizophrenia, schizotypal and delusional disorders477492372355358390403423450460Mood [affective] disorders5935686317457028719521, 0951, 1611,125Neurotic, behavioural and personality disorders1,7961,7112,0032,1951,9372,1242,5972,7713,3993,637Mental retardation4, 4564, 1151, 4851, 3361, 0641, 1651, 22279423588Other mental and behavioural disorders2, 4812, 8582, 5742,4692, 3812, 9272, 7172, 8972, 7672,820

Soft Drinks

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions (a) he and (b) the Minister for Public Health has had with Ministers in HM Treasury on the fiscal effect of an additional tax on soft drinks containing sugar.

Jane Ellison: There are ongoing discussions between the Department and other Government departments, including HM Treasury, to consider a range of options to reduce sugar consumption. We will be launching our childhood obesity strategy in due course. It will look at everything, including sugar, that contributes to a child becoming overweight and obese.

Mental Health Services: Children

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many young people aged 17 or under of each age were treated in adult mental health wards in each if the last 10 years for which figures are available.

Alistair Burt: Whilst we do not have figures for how many young people were treated in adult mental health wards, the data below shows the number who were admitted to adult mental health wards for all available years. These figures may therefore include children who have been admitted when their parents are treated, e.g. a mother for a perinatal mental health condition. Age2011/122012/132013/142014/15Total aged 17 and under3572193553910-1-21----2----3----4----5---26---27---28---39---310---311---312112813323814115981532142931161005110410617210145208210 The Mental Health Act 2007 introduced new provisions, in effect since April 2010, to help ensure that patients under the age of 18 are accommodated in an environment that is suitable for their age. Young people are all individual, however, and some in the 16 to 18 age group may feel more comfortable in adult wards. Services should take into account the individual’s needs and preferences. There are now more inpatient Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services inpatient beds (‘Tier 4’) than ever before.

Human Papillomavirus: Vaccination

Danny Kinahan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Answer of 28 January 2016 to Question 23467, what progress has been made on the procurement of the HPV vaccine.

Jane Ellison: The Department is considering the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s advice on this potential programme. Following this, consideration will be given to the procurement of vaccine.

Diseases: Drugs

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what arrangements there are for negotiating national prices for rare disease drugs that are not reviewed by NICE.

George Freeman: The prices of branded medicines to the health service, including those for rare disease drugs, are controlled by a voluntary and statutory scheme. The 2014 Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) agreed a fixed level of growth on the vast majority of National Health Service spend on branded medicines with additional expenditure above this level paid for by the pharmaceutical companies. Over the first three years of the 2014 PPRS the UK Health services are expected to get back almost £1.8 billion in PPRS payments. It is NHS England’s responsibility to develop commissioning policies for treatments provided as part of prescribed specialised services, including some medicines for rare diseases. As part of the development of such policies, NHS England may take into account commercial offers manufacturers may make to the NHS. The Accelerated Access Review is looking with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence at a range of new mechanisms for drug reimbursement adaptive pathways and managed access agreements.

Bisphenol A

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies on  managing risks to public health from bisphenol A in food and drinks sold in plastic containers of the decision of the Canadian government to ban such containers.

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research his Department has undertaken or commissioned into the effect on humans of high levels of bisphenol A caused by consuming food and drinks sold in some plastic containers; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: We are advised by the Food Standards Agency, which has responsibility for food safety, that the United Kingdom’s view remains that exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA) from food contact materials does not represent a risk to consumers. In January 2015, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published its latest re-evaluation of BPA exposure and toxicity. EFSA's experts concluded that BPA poses no health risk to consumers of any age group (including unborn children, infants and adolescents) at current exposure levels from food contact materials.

Palliative Care: Children

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the level of provision of paediatric palliative care services in North East England (a) in general and (b) in comparison to other English regions.

Ben Gummer: Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) have responsibility for ensuring that they are meeting the needs of those requiring children’s palliative care services, considering the full range of local provision, both statutory and voluntary sectors, and the wishes of children and young people and their families. We do not undertake national comparisons of the approach to palliative care in different regions. We understand that NHS Newcastle Gateshead CCG, together with partners across the region is working as a priority to commission a regional service that will be able to provide high quality care that can meet the needs of children, young people and families at this difficult time in their lives, replacing the current fast-track response agreed with local paediatric care service providers.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the training provision and capacity that will be required to ensure that child and adolescent mental health services have the appropriate number of staff to meet future demand for such services.

Ben Gummer: The Government has mandated Health Education England (HEE) to provide national leadership on education, training and workforce development. HEE sets out its commissioning intentions based upon the needs of local employers, providers, commissioners and other stakeholders who come together as members of HEE’s Local Teams. HEE’s national workforce plan for England is an aggregate of local teams’ plans, but the advice and input of clinical advisors and patient representatives, as well as the Royal Colleges and other stakeholders, is also listened to and considered. It is this discussion and involvement locally and nationally that makes this a plan for the whole of the National Health Service in England. Additionally, HEE’s mandate makes a commitment to work to achieve the vision expressed by Future in Mind including ensuring the priorities for workforce development in mental health are addressed in the life course approach to workforce planning.

Zika Virus

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the risk to the UK and Europe of the spread of the Zika virus.

Jane Ellison: Public Health England (PHE) continue to monitor the situation closely and have provided revised travel advice and updated guidance to healthcare professionals on the management of patients returning from affected countries who present with symptoms. There is no evidence to suggest that the mosquitos that are known to carry Zika are established in the United Kingdom or could survive in our climate and therefore the risk to the UK population from Zika is very low. PHE is in regular contact with specialists in other European countries, as well as internationally, to make sure all necessary steps are being taken to protect the UK travelling public.

Sepsis

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many cases of sepsis there were in each region of England in each of the last five years.

Ben Gummer: Data for finished discharge episodes (FDEs) with a primary or secondary diagnosis of sepsis for patients in each government office region of residence in England, in each year from 2010-11 to 2014-15 are provided below. These figures relate only to hospital admissions and do not include those patients who were diagnosed in a primary care setting, or those who attended hospital as an Outpatient. This is not a count of patients as the same patient may have had more than one episode of care within the same year. Count of FDEs1 with a primary or secondary diagnosis2 of sepsis3 for patients in each government office region of residence for 2010-11 to 2014-154. Activity in English National Health Service Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector Government office region2010-112011-122012-132013-142014-15North East4,7985,0745,6556,2757,388North West13,25813,10914,70817,22120,922Yorkshire and The Humber9,1829,18910,14611,33812,857East Midlands7,3168,1159,83110,86312,998West Midlands7,7727,91510,51812,29713,812East of England10,38010,43211,64713,10816,029London14,89415,22315,58017,86019,723South East13,94515,34416,60419,23921,378South West8,0138,2929,80510,96712,722England - Not Otherwise Specified48837584102Unknown/Non-England2,2758,2399,7163,5703,841Total91,881101,015114,285122,822141,772 Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre The increasing incidence of sepsis is likely to be due to people living longer and more medical and surgical interventions being performed. People with series co-morbidities are more likely to survive their illness, and for a longer period of time than in previous decades, which leads to much of the hospital-acquired sepsis that now occurs. Notes: 1Finished Discharge Episode (FDE) - A discharge episode is the last episode during a hospital stay (a spell), where the patient is discharged from the hospital or transferred to another hospital. Discharges do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one discharge from hospital within the period.2Number of episodes in which the patient had a primary or secondary diagnosis - The number of episodes where this diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and 7 prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. Each episode is only counted once, even if the diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record.3ICD-10 codes for Sepsis - A02.1 Salmonella sepsis, A20.7 Septicaemic plague, A21.7 Generalized tularaemia, A22.7 Anthrax sepsis, A26.7 Erysipelothrix sepsis, A28.0 Pasteurellosis, A28.2 Extraintestinal yersiniosis, A32.7 Listerial sepsis, A39.2 Acute meningococcaemia, A39.3 Chronic meningococcaemia, A39.4 Meningococcaemia, unspecified, A40.- Streptococcal sepsis, A41.- Other sepsis, A42.7 Actinomycotic sepsis, B37.7 Candidal sepsis, O85.X Puerperal sepsis, P36.- Bacterial sepsis of newborn The following pair of codes is a dagger/asterisk code pair (D and A) which must be present together: A39.1 Waterhouse-Friderichsen syndrome; E35.1 Disorders of adrenal glands in diseases classified elsewhere4Assessing growth through time (Admitted patient care) - HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, apparent reductions in activity may be due to a number of procedures which may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and so no longer include in admitted patient HES data. Conversely, apparent increases in activity may be due to improved recording of diagnosis or procedure information.Note that HES include activity ending in the year in question and run from April to March, e.g. 2012-13 includes activity ending between 1st April 2012 and 31st March 2013.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many safeguarding incidents occurred in child and adolescent mental health services in England by provider of such services in each of the last 10 years.

Alistair Burt: While information on safeguarding incidents is not held centrally, National Health Service organisations have a duty to investigate local safeguarding issues, where appropriate in conjunction with the relevant local authority. Reports from investigations into safeguarding concerns are typically held by the relevant clinical commissioning group, and local authority where appropriate.

General Practitioners

Victoria Borwick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will discuss with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government steps to encourage local authorities (a) to use their powers under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and (b) in other ways to allocate space for surgeries in new developments.

Alistair Burt: Departmental officials have regular contact with those at the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG). Discussions have included the funding of local infrastructure through the community infrastructure levy and section 106 agreements. We consider that national planning guidance published by DCLG provides local planning authorities with the required information to enable them to assess the future provision of local infrastructure which will include health and social care facilities. The provision of national health services in England is managed by clinical commissioning groups and NHS England. In order to assess whether new surgeries or other healthcare facilities will be required as a result of new development, local planning authorities should engage with these commissioners. They should be able to assess whether existing health services will be adversely affected by a new residential scheme and if so, what additional healthcare facilities would be required. This could include the enlargement of existing premises or lead to a requirement for new accommodation. Based on this information, the local planning authority has to make a decision on the appropriate funding arrangements for the required infrastructure resulting from a new development. We consider the best solution in this matter is for local planning authorities to use their existing powers to consult with the commissioners rather than any intervention by the Department.

General Practitioners: Greater London

Victoria Borwick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect on health care provision in Central London of trends in the number of GPs retiring from single-handed practices (a) over the last five years and (b) in the next five years.

Victoria Borwick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to help maintain access to local GPs for people in Central London.

Alistair Burt: This is a matter for NHS England. Where a single-handed general practitioner (GP) retires, it is the responsibility of NHS England to ensure the patients of that practice have continued access to National Health Service primary medical services. When a single-handed GP retires an assessment is made on a case by case basis taking into account a range of factors including the demographic profile of patients, alternative local GP capacity and quality, and, patient and stakeholder engagement. This assessment informs the decision as to whether to procure a new service provider or to facilitate patients to register with alternative local GPs. In terms of future planning NHS England and London Clinical Commissioning Groups are aware of the ages of GPs which may be an indication of future retirements, however, there is no set age for retirement. Capacity planning is constantly under review and considers both potential retirement as well as other factors such as population growth, premises and range of services to be provided which then informs commissioning strategy.

Mental Health Services: Children

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps are being taken to support children who have experienced abuse; how much funding has been allocated to (a) mental health services, (b) therapeutic services and (c) other support services for such children over each of the last five years; and what plans there are to vary the level of that funding.

Alistair Burt: The Government is committed to delivering the vision set out in the Future in mind report and is driving forward the transformation of children and young people’s mental health services to improve access to high quality support across the country. This transformation is being supported by £1.25 billion of additional Government investment, as well as an extra £150 million to help young people with eating disorders. Local Transformation Plans will set out how local organisations will use the additional investment of £1.4 billion the Government is making during the course of this Parliament to transform local child and adolescent mental health services. All clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), working closely with their partners in local government, Children’s Services and education, have developed plans to transform their local offer. These plans cover the full spectrum of mental health issues: from prevention and resilience building, to support and care for existing and emerging mental health problems, as well as transitions between services and addressing the needs of the most vulnerable. This includes those who have been exposed to sexual abuse or exploitation. NHS England increased funding of sexual assault referral centres (SARCs) from £8.98 million to £16.5 million in 2014/15 recurrently, especially to improve the paediatric response to the needs of sexually abused children. NHS England continues to make the health services response to sexual abuse a priority, and in addition to producing a five year plan for commissioning SARCs, they are planning to engage with CCGs on the delivery of therapeutic care to support survivors. The Government has set up the first ever cross-Government Ministerial Child Protection Taskforce to overhaul the way police, schools, social services and others work together in tackling abuse of children. The Taskforce’s work will build on the Government’s wide-ranging reforms to create a care system that puts children’s needs first.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many child and adolescent mental health services Tier 4 beds per 100,000 population there were in each (a) region and (b) clinical commissioning group in England in each of the last 10 years.

Alistair Burt: Whilst we do not hold historical data centrally on the number of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Tier 4 beds per head of population, current year data broken down by the four NHS England Regions and the 10 Specialised Commissioning Areas is outlined below. We do not hold this data broken down by clinical commissioning group (CCG) as Tier 4 services are commissioned nationally by NHS England Specialised Commissioning, and one CAMHS inpatient centre may serve the area covered by several CCGs. Specialised Commissioning AreaBeds/100,000 populationEast Midlands2.76East of England2.87London2.35North East3.03North West2.75South Central2.96South East Coast2.35South West1.10West Midlands2.87Yorkshire and Humber1.57AVERAGE2.50RegionBeds/100,000 populationLondon2.35Midlands and East2.84North2.39South2.15AVERAGE2.50

Lung Diseases

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have been diagnosed with lung disease in each of the last five years.

Jane Ellison: This data is not available in the format requested.

Diabetes

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of when treatments for diabetes involving the use of skin cells will become available.

Jane Ellison: Whilst we welcome any new forms of treatment or technology that may improve patient care, it is however too early to say whether current research on the potential to modify human skin cells into working pancreas cells will result in possible treatments for people with diabetes. Skin cells have also been studied for the application of promoting healing in diabetic foot ulcers. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guideline NG19 Diabetic foot problems: prevention and management, published in August 2015 recommends that, on the advice of the multidisciplinary foot care service, dermal or skin substitutes can be used in addition to standard care when treating diabetic foot ulcers. https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng19/chapter/1-Recommendations Health and care professionals are expected to take NICE guidance on the treatment of relevant conditions fully into account when deciding how to treat a patient.

NHS: Wifi

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what risk assessment he has conducted on the proposed rollout of wifi in NHS buildings.

George Freeman: Free wi-fi throughout National Health Service premises is an independent recommendation from Baroness Lane Fox to the National Information Board. As part of the implementation of Baroness Lane Fox’s recommendations, NHS England will be carrying out a more comprehensive review of current provision, benefits and barriers to wi-fi throughout the NHS estate. This will include assessment of any risks.

Dental Health: Cancer

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with clinical bodies on potential links between the levels of dentistry and cancer.

Jane Ellison: There have been no formal discussions with clinical bodies on this matter.

Diabetes: Heart Diseases

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with clinical bodies on the link between diabetes and heart disease.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with clinical bodies on the potential connection between the level of diabetes and eating pears to reduce sugar levels.

Jane Ellison: There have been no such recent discussions.

Muscular Dystrophy: Drugs

Mr David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to make translarna available to boys who could benefit from it.

George Freeman: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body that provides guidance for the National Health Service on whether to fund selected drugs and treatments. NICE is currently evaluating Translarna (ataluren) for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy through its highly specialised technology programme. The publication date for NICE’s final guidance is to be confirmed. The NHS in England is legally required to fund drugs and treatments recommended in NICE highly specialised technology guidance within three months of its final guidance being issued. In the absence of guidance from NICE, it is for commissioners to make decisions on whether to fund medicines based on an assessment of the available evidence.

Miracle Mineral Solution

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress the Food Standards Agency has made on coordinating steps in partnership with the Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Agency and the National Crime Agency to stop the marketing of Miracle Mineral Solution as a cure for children with autism; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has issued advice that Miracle Mineral Solution (MMS) is not safe and should not be sold as a supplement. It has been working with local authorities across the country to share knowledge, investigate and disrupt the sale of MMS and other similar products. Further activity is being conducted with the support of the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and with the involvement of the FSA’s National Food Crime Unit. This activity is ongoing and it would not be appropriate to comment in detail. However, the FSA has secured the removal of MMS products from some major marketplace websites, and it has shared information internationally through the National Crime Agency, alerting authorities in other countries to planned seminars at which the use of MMS is promoted.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many complaints were received about (a) adult and (b) children and adolescent mental health services in (i) England, (ii) London, (iii) each London borough and (iv) each London health trust in each year since 2010.

Alistair Burt: The information is not held in the format requested, however, figures for complaints received about mental health services in England, London and each London health trust in each year since 2010 are in the attached table.



Mental health services written complaints
(Excel SpreadSheet, 28.59 KB)

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many young people in children and adolescent mental health services waited longer than (a) one, (b) two, (c) three, (d) four, (e) five and (f) six months between referral and treatment in (i) England, (ii) London, (iii) each London borough and (vi) each London health trust in (A) 2010, (B) 2011, (C) 2012, (D) 2013, (E) 2014 and (F) 2015.

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average number of days were from referral to treatment in children and adolescent mental health services in (a) England, (b) London, (c) each London borough and (d) each London health trust in each year since 2010.

Alistair Burt: This information is not held centrally.

Compulsorily Detained Mental Patients: Children and Young People

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children and young people detained under section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983 were held in police cells in (a) England, (b) London, (c) each London borough and (d) each London health trust in each year since 2010.

Alistair Burt: The Department does not collect this information.

Mental Health Services: Children

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children under the age of 16 were treated in adult psychiatric wards in (a) England, (b) London, (c) each London borough and (d) each London health trust in each year since 2010.

Alistair Burt: Whilst we do not have figures for how many young people were treated in adult mental health wards, the data below shows the number under the age of 16 who were admitted to adult mental health wards. These figures may therefore include children who have been admitted when their parents are treated, e.g. a mother for a perinatal mental health condition. Provider codeDescription2010/112011/122012/132013/142014/15 England9747234375 London510***RRPBarnet Enfield and Haringey Mental Health NHS Trust*10***TAFCamden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust*****RV3Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust*****RWKEast London NHS Foundation Trust*****RATNorth East London NHS Foundation Trust*****RPGOxleas NHS Foundation Trust*****RV5South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust*****RQYSouth West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust*****RNKTavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust*****RKLWest London Mental Health NHS Trust***** At subnational level, data is always rounded to the nearest five out of respect for the privacy of the individuals concerned. For the same reason, we do not release exact figures where these are less than five. This means that since 2012/13 there have never been five or more young people under 16 admitted to adult mental health wards in London in any given year. This reflects the fact that following increased government investment there are now more inpatient beds (‘Tier 4’) in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services than ever before.These figures are published in the annual Mental Health Bulletin, which can be found at: http://www.hscic.gov.uk/mhldsreports

Health Professions: Training

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his oral contribution of 5 January 2016, Official Report, column 18, what the baseline year is for the commitment to train 10,000 more nurses, midwives and other allied health professionals over the course of the Parliament.

Ben Gummer: The Government has committed to remove the cap on the number of students studying nursing, midwifery and the allied health professions from 2017/18. This will enable universities to offer up to 10,000 additional places for students to start these courses by the end of the parliament. The Department of Health, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills with health and education partners will work together prior to implementation in 2017 to determine how these additional places are appropriately baselined (and monitored) against those commissioned for National Health Service workforce planning purposes.

Drugs: Overdoses

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he plans to take to ensure that the next of kin of people who have had a medical overdose are informed prior to discharge from NHS facilities.

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to ensure that people who have been discharged from NHS hospitals after a medication overdose have (a) an in-depth assessment by a mental health nurse and (b) someone who will be at home with them.

Mr Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to ensure that NHS hospitals make referrals straight to crisis teams in cases where a patient has taken an overdose of medication.

Alistair Burt: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guideline [CG133] regarding the longer-term management of self-harm in over eight’s sets out that care plans – including risk management and crisis plans – should be multidisciplinary and developed collaboratively with the person who self-harms and, provided the person agrees, with their family, carers or significant others. Care plans should also be shared with an individual’s general practitioner. It is for National Health Service organisations to design services to meet the needs of their local populations. NICE has produced a Clinical Knowledge Summary on the management of poisoning or overdose which is available at: http://cks.nice.org.uk/poisoning-or-overdose#!scenario This states that the person, if self-harm is found to be a factor, should have a psychiatric assessment by a trained professional. The Government’s Suicide Prevention Strategy also has details of what should be done if an overdose is suspected to be intentional. The Strategy acknowledges that emergency departments and primary care have important roles in the care of people who self-harm, with a focus on good communication and follow-up. In January, the Prime Minister announced £247 million to be used to develop further the provision of liaison psychiatry services in Emergency Departments in England. These services will ensure that people attending Emergency Departments who have mental ill health are assessed quickly and receive the most appropriate treatment.

Health Professions: Training

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much Health Education England spent on clinical placements for (a) nursing, (b) midwifery and (c) allied health students in the latest year for which figures are available.

Ben Gummer: Health Education England’s (HEE) planned clinical placement expenditure for the year 2015/16 is estimated as follows[1]: (a) Nursing: £100 million(b) Allied Health Professionals: £34 million(c) Midwifery: £13 millionHEE is currently working towards a common coding structure to be applied by Local Educations and Training Boards to the composite parts of trust clinical placement payments to provide detailed breakdown of actual expenditure for healthcare trainees in future years.   [1] These figures are rounded to the nearest million.

Health Professions: Training

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what funding his Department has set aside for managing the transition from NHS bursaries to student loans for new nursing, midwifery and allied health students from 1 August 2017.

Ben Gummer: The Department will be working with delivery organisations outside of the Department to assess a range of considerations for transition and implementation. The Department will be consulting on the health education funding reforms in due course.

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what mechanisms there are for NHS mental health trusts to take into account the views of patients when making decisions.

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of the funding for Improving Access to Psychological Therapies services since 2010 has been spent on training and development of people working in such services.

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information his Department holds on the number of psychological therapists employed by the NHS who experienced workplace-related stress in each of the last five years.

Alistair Burt: All National Health Service trusts are required take account of and involve patients and the public in the way they plan and provide services. Transforming Participation in Health and Care, published September 2013, sets out the legal duties on NHS Commissioners to both involve patients in their own care and to involve the public in the way they commission services. The Commissioning organisation should ensure that providers they commission to provide services have suitable arrangements in place to involve patient and the public. In addition NHS foundation trusts have specific responsibilities to involve their members and local communities usually through the appointment of Governing Body members. Trusts have their own arrangements as to how they make arrangements to involve their patients, carers and communities. Details of the arrangements would usually be available on the trust website. Health Education England (HEE) has responsibility for training new therapists and high intensity training. In 2015/16, the budget was £22.0 million to support 1,031 trainees. These trainees provide supervised practice alongside college attendance. There may also be some workforce development funding used to further develop people working in such services, however, HEE does not code its workforce development expenditure to the degree of detail to separately identify this. Data is not collected centrally on the number of psychological therapists employed by the NHS who experienced workplace-related stress in each of the last five years.

Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the written statement of 5 January 2016, HCWS447, in what month of 2016 his Department expects to receive the advance payment from the pharmaceutical industry referred to in that statement.

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the written statement of 5 January 2016, HCWS447, what the value is of the payment that will be made to his Department by the pharmaceutical industry in 2016 referred to in that statement.

George Freeman: The Department publishes the estimated United Kingdom and England Income from the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) payments on the GOV.UK website. This information is available to view at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/487575/payment_percentage_2016.pdf Estimated UK and England income from PPRS payments £ million2015/162016/17UK800647England640518  Individual PPRS members make quarterly PPRS Payments to the Department in arrears. Each payment, which is based on a company’s quarterly sales report, is made one month after the end of each quarter of the calendar year.

NHS: Training

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will place in the Library copies of each Local Education and Training Board's workforce investment plan for 2016-17.

Ben Gummer: This information is not held centrally. Health Education England (HEE) will be publishing the local plans as an appendix to the HEE commissioning and investment plan – 2016/17 and will be published on the HEE website before the end of February 2016.

Health Services

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential contribution of city regions to commissioning and delivering healthcare.

George Freeman: Devolution of health and social care responsibilities has the potential to further progress local integration going beyond statutory health and care services - leading to better patient experience, improved outcomes and more efficient use of local resource.Devolution creates opportunity for strategic, innovative commissioning, underpinned by a stronger model of local shared accountability.

Maternity Services

Nusrat Ghani: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans his Department has to reduce stillbirths and improve the safety of maternity care.

Mr Jeremy Hunt: In November, I announced a campaign to halve the national rates of stillbirths, neonatal and maternal deaths and brain injuries occurring during or soon after birth, by 2030. This includes a £2.24m fund for Trusts to buy cutting edge equipment, such as CTGs.

Human Papillomavirus: Vaccination

Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress his Department is making on rolling out HPV vaccinations to men who have sex with men.

Jane Ellison: In November 2015, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), the expert body that advises the Government on all immunisation matters, advised that a targeted human papillomavirus vaccination programme should be undertaken for men who have sex with men up to 45 years of age who attend genitourinary medicine and HIV clinics. They noted that this should be subject to procurement of the vaccine and delivery of the programme at a cost-effective price.JCVI acknowledged that finding a way to implement its advice would be challenging and made clear that work was needed by DH and others to consider commissioning and delivery routes for this programme. This work is already underway and we will announce our plans as soon as we can.

Accident and Emergency Departments: Mental Illness

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure timely psychiatric assessment in A&E for people with mental health problems.

Alistair Burt: In January, the Prime Minister announced £247 million to be used to develop further the provision of liaison psychiatry services in Emergency Departments in England. These services will ensure that people attending Emergency Departments who have mental ill health are assessed quickly and receive the most appropriate treatment.

Mental Health Services: Children

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the quantity and quality of specialist therapeutic support available to children who have experienced abuse.

Alistair Burt: Children who have been abused may require a range of services to meet their needs. Local commissioners are responsible for assessing local need and ensuring the delivery of appropriate services. Local partners and NHS England need to work together to help children who have experienced abuse or neglect access appropriate care pathways and evidence-based care.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Roger Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the performance of NHS emergency medicine services.

Jane Ellison: NHS staff in England continue to provide quality services in the face of increasingly high-levels of demand throughout the emergency healthcare system. Front-line services are treating record numbers of patients with more than nine out of 10 patients seen within four hours in A&E departments. Ambulance services are delivering over 2800 more emergency journeys every day compared to 2010 and responding to the majority of life-threatening cases in under 8 minutes.

Junior Doctors: Conditions of Employment

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress he has made on the junior doctors' contract renegotiation process.

Ben Gummer: Progress in negotiations has led to substantial agreement on a fairer contract with safety and training at its heart. The door remains open to the BMA to negotiate on the remaining issue of pay for unsocial hours, as they agreed to do in the joint agreement at ACAS in November.